A27 across Coastal West Sussex

A recent survey commissioned by the CWS Partnership in October 2019 found that:

  • 26% of business owners who use the A27 for business travel take alternative routes every day to avoid parts of the A27 in West Sussex.
  • On average, respondents think the turnover of their company would increase by 8% (7.62%) with an improved A27 in West Sussex
  • Two-fifths (40%) reported that journey times on the A27 were a major problem to their company

A27 update: Arundel Bypass

In October 2020, Highways England announced its preferred route for the Arundel Bypass. 

The new bypass will feature approximately 8km of dual two-lane carriageway to the south of the existing A27. Starting at Crossbush, the route will reconnect with the existing A27 in the west near the A27/A29 Fontwell (east) roundabout. Key features will likely include:

  • A junction at Crossbush with access to and from the A27 in both directions
  • A new viaduct spanning the River Arun and a bridge over the Arun Valley Railway
  • A new bridge over Binsted Rife
  • A new junction with the existing A27 at Tye Lane to the north of Walberton (with the A27 continuing via an underpass) enabling westbound access onto the A27 and eastbound access from the A27
  • The closure of Tye Lane south of the new
    route.

Find out more here.

The A27 is the main arterial route across Coastal West Sussex and is the most important transport connection between Portsmouth and Brighton.

However, the road is plagued by numerous bottlenecks at Chichester, Arundel, Worthing and Lancing where congestion and extensive queuing occur daily at most junctions along the bypass.

Traffic volumes and congestion on the bypass have a significant impact on business which is why the Coastal West Sussex Partnership will continue to use its collective voice to lobby for investment that support solutions to address the bottlenecks and so improve journey times and reliability across the network.

In September 2016, a consultation on the options for the A27 at Chichester was delivered by Highways England and the response to that consultation by the CWS Partnership Board can be found here

Night time traffic