Part of the countryside that would disappear to make way for the North Bexhill Access Road.

Show your love for the countryside and say NO to the North Bexhill Access Road

Local campaigners will gather on Valentine’s Day (Sunday 14 February) to say no to the proposed North Bexhill Access Road (NBAR). They will walk some of the route of the road, which runs for 2.4 kilometres, parallel to Ninfield Road, and stop for a photocall amongst trees threatened by the proposed road.

The NBAR has been on and off the Rother District Council planning committee agenda since December, but looks set to be finally heard on Thursday 11 February. The road has caused much controversy locally, with opponents citing loss of green space, over-development and effects on protected species as major concerns. The road is being developed by Sea Change Sussex and would allow for 3,100 houses and 60,000 square metres of business space to be built on the countryside north of Bexhill.

The date of the gathering was agreed before the planning meeting had been arranged, but it’s still worth attending, according to local campaigner Andrea Needham. “The planning application is listed for before the event, but who knows what might happen?” she says. “The meeting could be postponed again, the councillors could vote to defer it, something else might happen. And after all, all the link road protests started long, long after the planning permission had been passed.”

The event is being organised by Combe Haven Defenders. Spokesperson Anthony Bradnum said, “We’re asking people to come out on Valentine’s Day, to show their love for the countryside and to see what would be lost if this road were allowed to go ahead. It would devastate the countryside, damage ancient woodlands and destroy nearly 2 kilometres of hedgerow, a rich and vital habitat, as well as increasing carbon emissions. This road is not wanted and not needed, and we urge Rother’s planning committee to vote against it.”

NO to North Bexhill Access Road

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