The jazz festival over the August Bank Holiday attracted a debate at Monday’s town council meeting, but many of the points made had already been made in Rye News on this page. But maybe there are more to come.
Jazz bands (indeed any procession, like Christmas, Bonfire Night or Remembrance Sunday) can disrupt traffic (and life) briefly – but they do bring life and visitors to the town and are cars such a blessing?
Much focused at the council on the issue of traffic in Rye’s historic citadel area (where the County Council already issues parking permits for Watchbell Street – a precedent of sorts) and another continuing debate is about the delivery lorries in Lion Street.
But there is a wider debate over parking and traffic problems in the town centre which the town’s Neighbourhood Plan can not shy away from – particularly when nearby Hastings and Ashford both have partial pedestrianisation.
But less cars and lorries in the town centre are a wholly different proposition from less trains and/or services on the railway.
As reported elsewhere in this issue there is a public consultation about future services – which may mean trains stopping at Hastings, with passengers having to switch to another train for either Eastbourne or Brighton.
This poses a particular problem for hospital patients as our local hospital trust is splattered along the coast and appointments can sometimes be at the Conquest – on the outer edge of Hastings by bus or car – or in Eastbourne, with yet another hospital a long distance from the station.
However these proposed further deteriorations in service follow a summer of discontent on the railways with timetables cutback, replacement buses, and the loss of the 4-car summer services we briefly acquired in summer 2015. Hopefully this should trigger another council debate.
Photo : Rye News Library
The town badly needs a bypass, and its time we a campaigned for one