The Old Coachroad - East Sussex

The Old Coachroad is closed - likely for ever.

I just tried to use it. Sign says closed for a further six months which is well beyond the end of September closure date imposed in 2018 - see posts above dating back to then.

So we've been screwed over eh?

Where was GLASS?

Does anyone care about this loss of access?
Paul

Paul in Sussex said:

The Old Coachroad is closed - likely for ever.

I just tried to use it. Sign says closed for a further six months which is well beyond the end of September closure date imposed in 2018 - see posts above dating back to then.

So we've been screwed over eh?

Where was GLASS?

Does anyone care about this loss of access?
Paul

Click to expand...

Have you checked on the local council ROW site? They should list if this is closed and reasons.
Should be an email contact who will reply if you have any questions. (They will say weather & covid have caused delays) if you mail there is trace.

I do the above with Wiltshire council who are helpful & closure lists are updated. If I find an old sign(no dates for closure or not on list) I complain & ask if they would like the sign removed and returned.

I haven't looked today.
Last week I looked and there was nothing. I called the given number and was put through to a company in Yorkshire (This is Sussex...) who couldn't help but said someone from the local council would call. Naturally they didn't.

In 2018 they closed the lane from end September to April 1. Subsequently they have closed it at each end of the season. Three weeks here a month there.

P

@paul Hiya, not seen you in ages. How's the Landy now, rebuild all OK? Only saw the new chassis ready for the body but was looking great.

Re OCR, haven't been there since the pandemic so don't know its status. Was going to try Beddingham Hill up The Lay off the A26 which leads to the OCR but a friend told me a farmer up there says its not a RoW and waves a shotgun about?!

Hi Cappers
Chassis change all done. I started with a Richards chassis, fitted all the running gear but when i came to fit the fuel tank it was clear the chassis was wrong. Dealer replaced it with a Marsland - which was a win, but a lot of extra work.

The bit of lane you mentioned doesn't look like it is used when viewed from OCR end. As far as farmer goes most, but not all the locals have an attitude problem toward green laners. unnecessary and no credit to any of them.

Paul in Sussex said:

The Old Coachroad is closed - likely for ever.

I just tried to use it. Sign says closed for a further six months which is well beyond the end of September closure date imposed in 2018 - see posts above dating back to then.

So we've been screwed over eh?

Where was GLASS?

Does anyone care about this loss of access?
Paul

Click to expand...

Yeah I read the notice at the alfriston end - it says it is for the surface to recover after the resurfacing works - it says it’s a temporary restriction. I didn’t have my phone on me so no photo, but will go back sometime and get one. I have emailed the East Sussex rights of way officer to ask

EDIT: I tried to drive it this Sunday just gone (15/05/23)

Image of notice. Picture taken evening of 15 May '23.

It says six months closure or "until conditions improve", which I suspect they won't. I am on a farm and I can categorically state that 'conditions' are just fine. The Old Coach Road (OCR) is surfaced with crushed stone and/or rubble. The bulk of the traffic is local residents and vehicles servicing same (Post Office, Amazon etc) plus farm pickups, farm managers Disco's and tractors. The mileage accounted for by people green laning is insignificant.

This is a case of the council pandering to the locals - read my posts from 2018.

Is anyone going to help with this?

Does GLASS even exist as a meaningful force for good? I joined in 2018, found them to be useless (plenty chat, zero meaningful action), I didn't renew my membership. Interestingly the motorbike lot get to use the lane all year round (often on unlicenced machines) because they turned up at the inquiry in 2018 with a lawyer - GLASS didn't even know there was an enquiry until I told them - sadly after the event.

This strikes me as a case of working people (which I guess most of us are?) being obstructed from our leisure pursuit in the name of discrimination - the people living on the OCR are the elite, financially if not ethically, with time and resources on their hands. The elite of course have ready access, formally and informally to the local council - anyone for tiffin?

There are naturally issues with mis-use of the lane, something which could be remedied with effective policing and data gathering (CCTV - pictures from phones etc). There aren't even signs telling the public that vehicles/drivers have to be road legal.

Does anyone know what official channels can be used to appeal this bogus nonsense? I know nothing about local councils or the law around all this.

If the Ramblers were treated like this they would be burning local councillors in the streets...

I think there should be a meaningful conversation around this before green laning in wealthy areas becomes a faint memory, spoken of fondly by misty eyed old men. But please don't just send me a job list...

Regards
Paul

Dunno, but this is the reponse I have had from the ROW officer. So I shall be going back to check at the beginning of June…. And following up if it isnt open….




Here is the link she mentions in the email.

I agree we shouldn’t just let it slide… I am confused why the notice says one thing and their website and ROW officers says another…

I imagine in the future that all greenlaning will be banned regardless of the area.
This will be due to the halfwits with over sized tyres bounding of into the countryside instead of staying on the byway as many can be driven in a standard 2 wheel drive vehicle. Let's face it many lanes lack excitement, more often than not we go for the scenery more than anything, even drive the boring dead ends to make sure they get used.
Always polite and stop for other users and email ROW officers when a problem needs reporting.

flat said:

Dunno, but this is the reponse I have had from the ROW officer. So I shall be going back to check at the beginning of June…. And following up if it isnt open….

View attachment 288373


Here is the link she mentions in the email.

Seasonal byway restrictions

Details of seasonal restrictions on byways in East Sussex.

www.eastsussex.gov.uk

I agree we shouldn’t just let it slide… I am confused why the notice says one thing and their website and ROW officers says another…

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By the look of that every BOAT in the county is closed.

I shall write to council tomorrow, I was too angry today to put together anything civilised.
I have no idea how their decision making happens but presumably someone has signed this off, and presumably that person has to defend their position?

I might write to local councillor and/or MP. IN 2018 I took local councillor along OCR and had a useful chat but it was after the lane had been restricted to six months a year and too late to make any changes.

Perhaps something in the local paper along the line of "council in league with local bigots at expense of working peoples leisure interests" - or summat.

Any ideas?

If this is allowed to stand we soon won't have any lanes to enjoy.

Regards
Paul

Paul in Sussex said:

I shall write to council tomorrow, I was too angry today to put together anything civilised.
I have no idea how their decision making happens but presumably someone has signed this off, and presumably that person has to defend their position?

I might write to local councillor and/or MP. IN 2018 I took local councillor along OCR and had a useful chat but it was after the lane had been restricted to six months a year and too late to make any changes.

Perhaps something in the local paper along the line of "council in league with local bigots at expense of working peoples leisure interests" - or summat.

Any ideas?

If this is allowed to stand we soon won't have any lanes to enjoy.

Regards
Paul

Click to expand...

Unfortunately I would be amazed if the general public would be on your/our side. Unless you have an electric vehicle you are beyond contempt, all encouraged by the government of course. Pretty sure a legal process has to be followed to close lanes. My experience is more lanes are closed over winter which isn't necessarily a bad thing, except many chose to ignore this which in turn gives the council the ammo to close the lane permanently.

Paul in Sussex said:

I shall write to council tomorrow, I was too angry today to put together anything civilised.
I have no idea how their decision making happens but presumably someone has signed this off, and presumably that person has to defend their position?

I might write to local councillor and/or MP. IN 2018 I took local councillor along OCR and had a useful chat but it was after the lane had been restricted to six months a year and too late to make any changes.

Perhaps something in the local paper along the line of "council in league with local bigots at expense of working peoples leisure interests" - or summat.

Any ideas?

If this is allowed to stand we soon won't have any lanes to enjoy.

Regards
Paul

Click to expand...

I would write to the ROW officer aswell (politely) and ask when the decision was made and when it will be reviewed? Maybe local councillor etc aswell.
Tbh the winter thing isn’t a bad move, and for all we know they genuinely want the lane to recover and fully intend to re-open it.

From the look of the email I was sent it’s due to reopen in June.

From the notice you posted it’s probably not going to reopen until April next year.

I will go up weekend of 3/4th June and have a look and re-email at that point if it isn’t open