I was very interested to read the article written by John Minter regarding the traffic chaos at The Strand.
As a resident of South Undercliff since 1979 I can confirm that the situation with traffic has increased steadily over the years, not only in volume but also the size of vehicles.
My husband and I live on the side without a pavement, under the cliff, and we have to be extremely careful when crossing the road from our house.
The majority of vehicles go far faster than 30mph. There are no reminders of the speed limit either on posts or painted on the road. This information is displayed in Winchelsea Road and New Road, but it would appear that drivers forget all about it by the time they reach South Undercliff.
The pavement opposite our house is approximately three feet wide and it is only just possible for two people to walk side by side. Our neighbour had her rib broken when the wing mirror of a large lorry caught her as she was walking along the pavement.
I did write to Amber Rudd MP about this issue in July 2015 and she said she would raise the issue with Graham Dalton, Chief Executive of Highways England who responded to her to say they would investigate the issue to get an accurate picture and respond within 15 working days. I never heard from anyone again!!.
The amount of traffic the residents of South Undercliff have to endure causes noise, vibration and dirt and, in my opinion, it is about time the issue of a bypass was re-opened.
I cannot believe that the commercial traffic wants to negotiate all the small roads through Rye and would welcome a more straightforward route to get to East Sussex/Kent.
Photos: John Minter