Queensway Gateway Roadworks

• Queensway Gateway Road – due to open 29 September 2025

The Queensway Gateway Road (QGR) is almost complete with the road due to open to the public by morning (30 September). The final stage of the project enabled the connection of QGR to the existing A21 by developing a signalised junction to manage demand and improve traffic flow and transport links between Bexhill and Hastings.

The new adaptive traffic signals are designed to adjust signal timings based on current traffic conditions, optimising traffic flow in real-time. Once the road is open the new traffic signals can take several weeks to fully optimise and adapt to traffic patterns.

In addition, this project offers:

• a new public right of way and cycle path
• greater resilience and reliability across the local road network
• improved access to key employment and residential sites
• the potential to unlock up to 12,000 square metres of employment floorspace
• opportunities to attract private sector investment and support local job creation

When the new junction opens, the traffic management and partial closure of Maplehurst Road will be removed, returning to two way traffic flow, and the new double yellow lines on Whitworth Road will become enforceable, so parking will not be allowed. Overnight work will be needed to enable a small amount of work to be completed and details of this will be shared with the public when confirmed.

You can read more about the project at Queensway Gateway Road Project | East Sussex County Council.

Background

Construction of the QGR began in 2017 and has been subject to a series of delays and challenges, understandably causing frustration to local residents and businesses.

The Queensway Gateway Road (QGR) is a strategic infrastructure project within the Hastings Bexhill Growth Corridor. It links the A21 Sedlescombe Road North and Queensway via a single-carriageway road and will, in the future, provide access to designated employment development sites.

Construction of the QGR began in 2017, and East Sussex County Council, acting as the Highway Authority, took over the project in March 2024. The remaining construction is being delivered by Balfour Beatty Living Places, the Council’s East Sussex Highways contractor.

The QGR provides a crucial connection between Queensway and Sedlescombe Road North. It supports the objectives of the Hastings Local Plan and the recently adopted East Sussex Local Transport Plan. It will also unlock employment land identified in Policy E1 of the Hastings Local Plan 2004 and Policies LRA7 and LRA8 of the Hastings Planning Strategy, enabling the development of up to 12,000 sqm of employment floor space south of’ The Ridge’.

UPDATE from Karl Taylor, Assistant Director of Operations for Communities, Economy and Transport for the A21 Sedlescombe Road North 28th August 2025

I wanted update you on our plans to ease daytime traffic on the A21 Sedlescombe Road North over the coming weeks. We are acutely aware of disruption that temporary restrictions have caused while construction proceeds. In order to reduce this disruption as far as possible, the temporary traffic lights will be removed from the A21 Sedlescombe Road North between the hours of 6am and 8pm, from Monday (1 September) to allow traffic to flow in both directions as normal. Overnight closures, between 8pm and 6am, will continue while our contractor Balfour Beatty completes the junction with the Queensway Gateway Road.

We hope removal of daytime restrictions on the A21 Sedlescombe Road North will make many people’s daytime journeys easier, especially with the start of the new school term.
We also want to reduce as far as possible any overlapping impact with traffic restrictions on A2100 Battle Hill, during the planned Southern Gas Networks from 1 September. Those essential and long-scheduled upgrade works will take six weeks during this summer/early autumn period, when gas demand is low. If they were further delayed, they could take longer to complete because of higher pressure in the system as demand for gas increases in colder weather.

• In summary, the timetable is as follows:
  • From Monday 1 September: Traffic restrictions will be removed from the A21 Sedlescombe Road North during the day between 6am and 8pm each day. Work on completion of the Queensway Gateway Road will continue overnight.
  • From Monday 1 September: Southern Gas Networks will begin gas main works on Battle Hill for six weeks.
  • Queensway Gateway Road will be completed in September, as advised last week, and fully open to traffic.
• This information will also be available on our project webpage later today: https://live.eastsussexhighways.com/highway-schemes/queensway-gateway-junction-improvements

I hope you find this update useful. If you would like any further information, please let me know and I will be happy to try and provide it.

We apologise again for the delays residents, road users and businesses are experiencing on the A21 and thank everyone for their patience. The new road junction is almost complete, and will bring significant benefits to the local community including better connections between Hastings and Bexhill and support for new jobs in the area.

• 04/10/2024 – Karl Taylor, Assistant Director of Operations for Communities, Economy and Transport sent the following reply back to the Parish Council:

Dear Ms Clarke,

Your recent enquiry-19367565

Thank you for your emails of 18 and 19 September, regarding the concerns of Westfield residents and the parish council as relates to works on the Queensway Gateway, Wheel Lane and Parsonage Lane.

With regards to the build-up of traffic, we have conducted time monitoring journeys on the approach from the A28 and the approach from Sedlescombe Road North. Our data shows that, at peak times, the longest wait time was 19 minutes. To improve traffic flow for vehicles exiting the A28 on to the A21, we will be installing a Keep Clear box on the A21, to prevent the access from the A28 being impeded by queuing traffic. We do not intend to install three-way lights at this junction, during our works.

The A21 has been made one way to facilitate repairs to a fragile gas main, along with vegetation cutting, street lighting electrical works, site clearance, signage works, site surveys and setting up of the works site. The temporary traffic signals have been in place to ensure the safety of the operatives and road users in the area and will remain in place until 1 November. Traffic will return to two-way flow from 1-18 November.

Prior to works taking place, a full survey of the underground services was carried out. The gas escape which occurred was as a result of the fragility of the gas main, which could not have been foreseen during the surveys, and we apologise for any additional disruption caused, while SGN were on site to resolve this.

In order to reduce the disruption on the A21, we are reviewing our traffic management on a daily basis, and we will be reducing it wherever possible. We will also be utilising 24 hours working, where safe to do so, to reduce the length of time of our works, which will allow us to have the highway network clear sooner.

We have closed Maplehurst Road, during these works, to reduce traffic buildup and ensure unimpeded access for emergency vehicles. Maplehurst Road will be reopened to through traffic once the works on the Queensway Gateway project is complete. Allowing other traffic to use Maplehurst Road would cause massive disruption and further amplify the build up of traffic in this location. Maplehurst Road will be re-opened once works are completed, currently scheduled for 31 December 2024.

Due to regulations imposed by the Department for Transport, official diversion routes must divert traffic on a like-for-like basis. In this case, because we are closing an A class road, we can only divert vehicles onto other A class roads. Regrettably, this can result in the diversion route being lengthy. We cannot stop road users with local knowledge using other routes; however, we recommend that the official route is followed.

Should road users encounter potholes or other safety issues on their chosen routes, we would encourage them to report these to us via our website – https://eastsussexhighways.com/ . I can confirm that we are actively reviewing Stonestile Road, Ivyhouse Lane, Chowns Hill and Rock Lane for maintenance. If residents suffer damage to their vehicle, while using alternative routes, they can submit a claim form, via our website – https://live.eastsussexhighways.com/application-forms/making-claim-east-sussex-highways . Each claim will be assessed on a case by case basis.

With regards to the closure for drainage works on Wheel Lane and Parsonage Lane, these works have now been postponed until the completion of the Queensway works.
We do not envision any sanctions being required as all contractors have been fully briefed on the requirements and timeframe of delivery. We’ve received positive input into expediting the works to minimise disruption on the network, wherever safe to do so. The Project Management Board for these works are heavily involved in the planning and delivery of these works and are aware of their responsibilities attached to this, namely, to ensure the minimal disruption for residents.

I hope the above information is of use and addresses the concerns which have been raised both by and to Westfield Parish Council.

Yours sincerely

Karl Taylor
Assistant Director of Operations
Communities, Economy & Transport

• 19/09/2024 – The Clerk has written to ESCC again due to the proposed works and closure of sections of Wheel Lane and Parsonage Lane between 9.30am and 4pm from the 21/10/2024 to the 31/10/2024. The request is that the works are moved after the A21/A28 has been reopened or the works are carried out at night.
• 18/09/2024 – The PA to the CEO and Lead of ESCC acknowledged receipt of the email and confirmed the matter would be looked at and a response will be provided in due course.
• All residents who had copied the Clerk into their correspondence to ESCC received a copy of the email sent.
• 18/09/2024 – The Clerk sent the below email to The email went to the CEO of ESCC, Becky Shaw, the Leader of the Council Cllr Glazier, Assistant Director, Transport & Operations – Karl Taylor, the MP, Cllr Carl Maynard (County Cllr) and Cllr Hamish Monro the Chairman of Westfield Parish Council. Whilst the Parish Council is limited in their ability to challenge these processes, the Parish Councillors would hope that due to the number of emails and concerns raised a compromise could be made and some actions put in place to help mitigate the traffic during the worst periods at least. At the bottom of the email a list of considerations for ESCC to come back on. Whilst it is recognised improvements on the A21 do need to be made it does seem that there is a better way forward to minimise the current chaos.

Dear All,

The Parish Council had the matter of the chaos on the A28 and A21 raised by a resident and has since received several emails from residents concerned about the impact this is having on their day-to-day lives. Both the parish council and many residents are aware that works need to be carried out in this area however it is the manner that the road works are being delivered that is raising the most concern at the moment.

The Parish Council wishes to accumulate the concerns by residents and Parish Councillors and also follow this up with several questions. The Parish Council ask that a full reply is given not just the standard replies being sent to residents. It does not address the concerns being raised:

• Core concerns
  • The level of chaos that is currently being experienced by residents.
  • The closing of Maplehurst Road.
  • The lack of traffic management to allow cars exiting the A28 onto the A21 and the increased delays and risk this is causing to drivers trying to edge out turning left and right.
  • The lack of clarity why the A21 is being made one way when no obvious works are being carried out and why these barriers have been erected in the first place.
  • The ‘diversions’ being offered to residents are either down dangerous roads or are unacceptably long especially when trying to access the hospital where there is no alternative option but to go there.
  • The lack of planning carried out in identifying underground services in relation to the works.
• Questions about the works
  • Why has the A21 been made one way for the duration of the works? Whilst safety of workers would need to be considered when works are happening close to the A21 could this not be for a shorter period of time and should be reflected in the plans for the road closure rather than having a blanket approach. The current approach is causing so much chaos for Westfield residents, school buses and those who use the A21. This is also in light that the services in the area have not been properly identified and this will cause even further delays.
  • Why does the road management plan not take into account those turning off of the A28 onto the A21? Due to the massive delays those coming up the A21 are reluctant to give way causing even further delays which could have been addressed through a three way traffic system.
  • Why has Maplehurst Road been closed? Whilst the Parish Council have been told this is in relation to emergency vehicles, in reality emergency vehicles are not going via Maplehurst Rd. The general backlog of traffic would surely be making it harder for emergency vehicles to move freely along the A28 and A21.
  • The level of traffic and closing of Maplehurst Road would clearly have and is having the narrow country lanes used as diversions so why was the condition of these lanes not addressed and dealt with before the diversions were put in? There should have been a general common sense approach to the overall poor condition of these roads including roadsides and edges that have been completely eroded away and an assessment on the worsening conditions of these roads if they were not properly repaired and resurfaced. These lanes are not suitable for large traffic and very little consideration has been given to the fact many are in rural settings so tractor and horse riders also use these lanes causing further disruption and endangerment to these other road users.
  • Are there any planned road closures in the area which will worsen the situation for Westfield residents?
  • What forms should residents be filling out if their car is damaged using an alternative route?
  • What investigations and sanctions will be made against the contractors if they are not carrying out the works within a tight time frame to minimise this level of serious disruption and to ensure they are putting in the right level of road management measures to keep the traffic as free flowing as possible? This is a project carried out by contractors but overall responsibility rests with the Leader of the Council and the Chief Executive to ensure the minimal disruption or be able to act if they are made aware the level of chaos this is causing for residents.
• Request for immediate consideration
  • Please consider attending a Westfield Parish Council meeting to discuss concerns with residents in October.
  • The reopening of Maplehurst Road.
  • Allow the A21 to reopen both ways moving the large barriers into the bottom of Junction Road and only making the A21 into one lane when essential to do so.
  • Carry out essential road works at night on the narrow lanes of Stonestile Road, Ivyhouse Lane, Chowns Hill and Rock Lane to make these safe for the significantly increased use from road users and larger vehicles going down these routes. Essential to include making roads stable and safe with proper resurfacing and rebuilding any edges which have been eroded away.
  • Ensure a safe option for three way traffic lights are introduced whenever the A21 does go down to one lane of traffic to ensure traffic along the A28 has a safe option for joining the carriageway and to keep traffic flowing. This is particularly relevant during peak times.

I look forward to hearing from you and see if there is not a compromise that could be reached to minimise the current impact these roadworks are having on our residents and children trying to get to school. Please note all communication is going to be publicly shared to allow residents to see the responses.

• 11/09/2024 – Resident attended Full Council meeting to discuss the concerns of the impact the current /roadworks with additional road closures and long diversions and/or diversions down narrow lanes where the road surface and road edge are in very poor condition. Councillors resolved for the Clerk to write to ESCC to raise the concerns. The Clerk received a number of emails over the weekend sent by Westfield residents raising their concerns with ESCC and the contractors Balfour Beatty. These issues were collated and put into a single email. The email was sent to all Parish Councillors for comment.