Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 21 July (HL6569), how Highways England was able to determine three possible new routes for the A27 between Polegate and Lewes before completing consideration of (1) environmental impacts, and (2) the impact on the towns and communities at the two endpoints of these routes.

The “A27 East of Lewes Off-line Study” represents an early stage of work to evaluate the need or otherwise for an enhancement of the A27 off the existing line of route. The study uses three different alignments for modelling purposes only. Development of specific route options and a detailed assessment of their benefits and costs, including environmental impacts, would follow at a later stage of work.