PAGHAM NEIGHBOURHOOD PLAN INFRASTRUCTURE GROUP SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND PRIORITIES PARKING There was a high level of response to this topic which included many aspirations to provide car parking near to the beach and/or harbour and the shops in Nyetimber. To address the first requirement, we have looked at four possible sites; The Dell (area of land between Harbour Road and Lagoon Road at the end of Sea Lane) Land at the end of Sandy Lane adjacent to East Front Road The Spit Car Park at the west end of Harbour Road Slipe Field in Church Lane All these have positive points but there are equally challenging barriers to using any one of these sites. A fifth option was suggested, ie; the use of a Park and Ride scheme but this has been discounted on the basis of practicality and cost. Looking at the options, The Dell, Sandy Lane and Harbour Road all have similar challenges to development in that they all either exist on private land or require access over private land. In the case of Sandy Lane, this area also has SSSI status. Slipe Field is also privately owned but we believe that an opportunity may exist to work with the owner to produce a mutually beneficial solution for both the village and the owner. The downside of this location is simply that, its location. Access would be via the narrow Church Lane. Once vehicles are parked, their occupants would be close to the northern and eastern side of the harbour, they would be a considerable distance from the south side and the beach. Access to the beach is then made via the permissive path through Slipe Field or the path south from the Salthouse round the harbour edge and across the end of the Lagoon which would allow access to the existing Spit car park and the boardwalks to the beach. The other main downside is that this area of the beach has no facilities, ie; café, toilets, etc. and it could also be argued that if this location were selected, trade could be drawn away from the shops in the Parade and the traditional beach access area centred on the yacht club. With regard to parking by the shops in Nyetimber (ie; Tesco s), there is limited parking immediately outside the shops and the area regularly becomes congested. There is limited option for the other off road parking in the immediate vicinity due to the features on the road to the front of the shops, having; access to housing, a bus stop, pedestrian crossing, proximity to the junction with Nyetimber lane and The Inglenook and Bear public houses / restaurants nearby. There is a large car park adjacent to the shops but this is private property for the patrons of the Bear which is opposite the shops. It may be possible to come to a workable solution with the owner but current practice is for them to actively discourage parking by non- patrons.
CYCLING 28% of the respondents to the survey stated that they cycled regularly and around 50% felt that provision of cycleways would be beneficial to the community, however, the cyclist is not well served in Pagham. The spine roads are narrow rat runs for motorists and carry heavy freight vehicles to the adjacent nurseries. Some estate roads have also become rat runs. Twitterns (alleys) have either been closed or are prohibited to cyclists. Providing the following should advance safe cycling in the parish and should be read in conjunction with the parish map attached: Routes to Bognor Regis and Chichester Safe routes to Bognor are not available along the seafront and private estates restrict quiet road access. Bognor provides a wide range of shops, a rail link as well as employment. Butlins leisure activities in Bognor are to include cycle hire. This will require safe routes around and out of the town to include Pagham. A similar situation applies to safe routes between Pagham and Chichester although in this instance there are clear alternatives requiring upgrading of existing rights of way to the city and its secondary schools. The National Cycle Network Route 2 (NCN2) from Folkestone to Honiton has a significant gap between Bognor and Chichester and could be routed safely through Pagham. Action required; the footpaths noted on the map should be legally converted to bridleways or cycle ways. Permissive routes represent the simplest way forward requiring only the consent of the landowner. The twitterns currently restricted to pedestrian access should be incorporated into the cycle network where possible as shared routes. Routes to schools Bognor has one of our secondary schools, which should be accessible safely by cycle from Pagham. Secondary schools are also sited in Chichester and can be accessed by the routes indicated above. Primary Schools for Pagham children are sited in our neighbouring parish of Aldwick. There are currently no safe routes from the Pagham Beach area to the primary schools. Action required: as indicated on the map busy roads such as Nyetimber Lane and Cardinals Drive should be re- engineered for mixed use. Dedicated crossing places should be installed where indicated. Routes to local workplaces Most working people resident in Pagham work outside the parish and would be served by the routes indicated above accessing Bognor and Chichester. Within the parish horticulture is a major employer but the nurseries are all accessed from a narrow dangerous road (Pagham Road). This road is currently designated the South Coast Cycle Route but falls far short of the quiet rural route required. Local employers would welcome a safer alternative. Action required: provide a cycle path parallel to Pagham Road accessing nurseries and connecting to the bridleway to Banwell and South Mundham, providing an alternative route to Chichester.
Cycle Security Adequate cycle stands should be provided throughout the parish to allow cycles to be locked and immobilised. RIGHTS OF WAY (inc DISABILITY PROVISION A number of options have been considered and prioritised as shown below. High Priority Route A - Make the pavement/footway adjacent to public highways dual usage pavement and cycle route. The roads/ pathways to be considered are shown in yellow in the drawing below. These link the heavily populated areas to the shops at Pagham Parade and Nyetimber along with both primary schools. This will provide a safe, sustainable route for cyclists and mobility vehicles. This will involve working with WSCC to facilitate the dedication and marking of the route on the ground, some additional cycle awareness signs may be required.
Route B - A safe cycle route is needed for commuting (both to work and schools in Chichester) and for leisure, adjacent to Pagham Road and the B2166 up to the parish boundary at Runcton. Barfoots have already indicated that they would be willing to work with the parish to create a route over their land where it runs parallel to Pagham Road and the B2166 as their workers also need to access village facilities. Further advice may be needed to assess whether a formalised surface would be required. The route should also be dedicated as a bridleway which would provide a safe link for horse riders to ride from Nyetimber over to South Mundham via BW129. To make this happen there needs to be liaison between the landowner, parish and the PROW (Public Rights of Way) section at WSCC. In addition it is important to liaise with North Mundham parish to continue the route through the short section of B2166 to then pick up the bridleway network both sides of Vinnetrow Road which continues up to Chichester. Route C Creating a bridleway/cycle link from Nyetimber (Summer Lane) over to Honer Lane to then pick up the Sustrans Route 88 which runs from Chichester to the RSPB Visitor Centre at Sidlesham. This would also link into the future cycling routes being created as part of the Medmerry Realignment scheme. That then leaves a relatively short distance to cycle on public highway before linking in with the Chichester Harbour Conservancy route, the Saltern s Way, which takes you from West Wittering to Chichester. The project is already being worked on by Sustrans, the parish should actively work with assist and support Sustrans in making this route happen. The issue in the past with this route was, landowner consent to upgrade the path status from footpath to either bridleway or cycleway, over the
short section west from the Southern Water access track along Summer Lane, to where FP106 joins Honer Lane. Some surfacing may have been identified by Sustrans. Medium Priority Route D Create a cycle/bridleway route along Harbour Rd, along the harbours edge and North Wall. Would require landowner consent with a number of landowners who have an interest, there may also be limitations due to the Nature Reserve s protection status. Continuity through upgrading the Rights of Way network through North Mundham and Sidlesham Parishes to link to Route 88 and the RSPB Visitor Centre at Sidlesham is required. Surfacing work would be required in a number of locations.
Low Priority Route E Create a cycle/bridleway link from the B2166 through to Park Farm and onto Lagness. The route could then continue south to link into Aldwick. Work required to make this happen, landowner consent. Surface conditions are good from the B2166 to Lagness as it follows a concrete farm access track. South to Aldwick would need an assessment as to whether the surface would require upgrading. ALLOTMENTS Currently there are no allotments in Pagham. Over 200 people believe there is a very important need to provide allotments locally. A list of 12 people (names, addresses and phone numbers have been provided) expressing a desire for allotments exists already. In addition, 20 Pagham residents are on the waiting for an allotment in Aldwick. Given this level of interest, we believe this aspect should receive a high priority in the plan. The many allotment Acts that are in force state that if any six residents require allotments and there are none in the parish, the local authority has a statutory duty to provide them. The standard size for an allotment is 250 m 2 which gives approximately 40 to the hectare. Given that 32 are already required we require at least a hectare immediately. It is better to locate
allotments in one place which makes management, delivery of manure, water supply and car parking a lot easier. A potential site that has been identified is next to the village hall paddock. Providing additional allotment space could be a condition of granting permission for development of the housing we are required to take. OPEN SPACES AND IMPORTANT STRUCTURES No specific items of improvement/development were identified in the survey other than that the existing open spaces, trees and important structures should be conserved, maintained and protected to ensure these are available for future generations and to help retain the character of the village as it is now. Structures: - listed in appendix D of the Pagham neighbourhood plan survey report, probably the most important being: - Thomas a Becket Church, one of the oldest Parish Churches. The oldest continuously inhabited house near the Lamb pub The Mulberry harbour section off the Yacht Club in the middle of Pagham Bay. Several thatched cottages and the church farmhouse and storage barns storage barns not that well looked after at present! The beach estate has also been identified as an Area of Special Character. Open Spaces include the Green The Dell, the SSSI Nature reserve between East Front road and Sandy Lane the SSSI vegetated shingle of Pagham Beach the village hall Paddock the Football club Scout hut field The Pond adjacent to Sussex Drive and Lake View? AREAS WHICH ARE THOUGHT TO BE OUTSIDE THE REMIT OF THE NEIGHBOURHOOD PLAN ROADS AND PAVEMENTS Although many respondents were concerned about traffic speed and the condition of roads, we feel that this is a topic that cannot, or should not be, addressed in the Neighbourhood Plan. The same applies to the condition of pavements around the village. However, one area that perhaps should be considered though is the southern end of Harbour View Road where for approximately 200m, there is no footpath.
As these are primarily safety issues, we feel these should be addressed by the WSCC outside of the Neighbourhood Plan process. PUBLIC AND COMMUNITY TRANSPORT The main requirement identified by the residents was for better evening (ie; buses running at later times) and weekend services. These could potentially be achieved by reducing some services during the day time, eg; by changing the schedule from four buses/hour to three/hour.
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