National Highways say further work is needed by developers before it will give its approval to the Winchelsea Road development in Rye, which features a new Aldi supermarket.
In a significant intervention, revealed the day before public consultation closed on Friday, August 9 the agency recommends delaying any planning decision until November 2 to allow the developers time to improve their modelling on access to the site. It has also firmly rejected their traffic and parking projections. The plans for the development, which also includes homes and residential housing, are due to be discussed by Rother District Council's planning committee on Thursday, September 5.
National Highways is responsible for the traffic and maintenance on the A259. In its online submission to Rother District Council’s planning portal, which was uploaded on Thursday, August 8 the agency says: “National Highways does not consent to the alteration of the access on to the A259 trunk road at this time.”
The agency makes it clear that it will recommend refusing planning permission until its concerns about access to the site are answered. “The design of the proposed site access junction requires a departure from standard which is being progressed by the applicant with National Highways. As of 19 July 2024, National Highways submitted a report to the applicant indicating further work is required to progress the application."
Data on vehicle turning movements relating to the A259 will now need to be amended in the traffic assessment; the prediction of vehicle trips re-modelled; traffic flows clarified and the traffic from other building developments taken into consideration — because "cumulatively [it] could have a material impact" on the road network.
In addition, National Highways rejected the methodology used by highway planning specialist Connect Consultants to calculate car parking use at the new Aldi, saying that it didn't reflect periods of peak demand. The supermarket would have 107 parking spaces. Parking assumptions for the proposed 44-apartment retirement home will also need to be revised.
It's understood that Aldi was hoping to open the new food store next year, if planning permission is granted.
It's now known that the proposed access junction to the site will be a "simple priority junction" similar to the current arrangement, although the project proponents hope to improve visibility splays. Kerbs leading from the site access to Winchelsea Road will be adjusted to give a "bellmouth" connection and there will be a "crossing point" over the main road north of the access junction, comprising dropped kerbs and tactile paving.
Other access options such as a mini-roundabout, a "ghost island" priority junction and a traffic signal-controlled junction were rejected because of the need to acquire land, which would have made the cost prohibitive.
The submission also reveals the agency has been discussing the plans with the developer for almost four years. "National Highways provided pre-application advice in relation to an initial scoping note in November 2020. Further comments were then provided in respect of an updated scoping note in June 2021.”
A spokesperson for Aldi confirmed the plans include a replacement T-junction. "The layout and detail of the junction design has been the subject of discussions over the past year with National Highways, who are responsible for the A259 Winchelsea Road, and the team are working with them to design a suitable junction, taking into account the existing constraints of the site. Through the consultation process, the team are liaising with both National Highways and East Sussex County Highways to respond to any matters that arise while both highway authorities review the technical submissions."
You can read the full National Highways submission here.
