Mark Dunn

Dear Mark

It was good to meet you and Robert this morning and have a chat.

As you suggested I am emailing you to reiterate my concerns of the dangers of vehicles parking in The Drive very near to the A259. The danger I have now encountered several times is travelling from Emsworth, signalling left to turn into The Drive traffic behind assume you will be able to complete the turn into The Drive. However if traffic is travelling southwards in The Drive and you are confronted immediately with parked vehicles you are left standing on the A259. I have had several near misses of traffic having difficulty in stopping and hitting my car from the rear.The simple solution would be to introduce double yellow lines on both sides of The Drive for a length of say 30m which would provide sufficient space to turn into The Drive even if other traffic is travelling South towards you. This all sounds a bit “garbled” but I trust you will be able to understand the problem!

I would appreciate it if you could support my suggestion and put the wheels in motion.
My wife and I wish you well in the coming election.

Regards

David Cobden

David,

Thank you for your best wishes. Its was very nice for me to see an old friendly face…though the whole experience was quite encouraging, provided my supporters will actually turn out and vote.

I have already been in touch with Steve Johnson, our expert in matters like the junction of the A259 with The Drive. And I am copying this and your email to him.

We will see what can be done.

The risks of accidents for vehicles turning into the drive, from either direction, are made higher by reason of the speed which the traffic moves at. My guess is that at rush hours there is a considerable volume of traffic moving at significantly over 30 mph. This, and the cars parked on the verges of the A259, which sometimes resembles a car salesman’s paradise, make this junction into a local ‘hotspot’. The idea of a no parking zone – double yellow lines – around the junction seems like common sense to me.

I await Steve’s feelings with interest.

If there are costs involved which the County cannot meet, I will put the matter to the Parish Council.

Mark

Speeding and Selfish Parking practices can, and do, blight the lives of many law abiding residents. Just as Antisocial Behaviour and rowdyism can damage our communities.

Bringing about a real change for the better won’t be easy, but progress can be made if communities, especially through their Parish Councils, keep up the pressure for better local policing and more responsive parking regulation.

As a recent Chairman of the Sussex Police Authority, I am proud of its success in getting the Police Community Service Officers introduced, and of the sensible way PCSO’s are beginning to relate with Parish Councils more and more effectively. We need more of the same, and I will do my best to make sure the current improvements continue.

One priority is making sure that there are enough places for people to park. This has not been easy and there will be more challenges to meet as new regulations are introduced. Another challenge relates to improved bus and rail services. I will keep up the pressure.

Equally, the Sussex Police’s Operation ‘Crackdown’, aimed at cutting speeding – especially in our villages – will get my steady support. It takes time to change habits, but it can and will happen.