Vital safety works to start on the A20

As many residents have seen from the Start of Works Notice (SOWN) issued a couple of weeks ago, KCC/ Kent Highways will be carrying out significant works to enhance safety on the A20 near Farningham, starting on 4 November.

 The central feature of the works is to install a system of average speed cameras in the area of the 40mph zone to the east (West Kingsdown facing side) of Kings roundabout. This follows extensive work and analysis of the factors behind the serious and fatal accidents that have taken place on this stretch of road. Driver error (often not on the part of those who were the victims of the crashes) was a common feature, but speed made the effects much more severe. This is the logic of the average speed camera installation, and is in accordance with the thinking behind KCC’s Vision Zero Strategy – that you can never fully eliminate driver error, but you can take measures to reduce and mitigate its effects.

In addition, KCC will be installing 40 mph roundels on that stretch of road, countdown markers on the approach to the 40mph gateway, just north of Charton Manor, and will enhance the current high friction surfacing at the A20 main Road junction with the A225 Eynsford Road with a higher skid resistant asphalt surface. The countdown markers, which originated in discussions that I held between Kent Highways and the Parish Council, are an unusual step, and required some discussion with the Department for Transport.

I have been asked why these measures have not been applied on the Swanley-facing side of the roundabout where there is a lot of concern about speeds as vehicles head towards Swanley. However, this would not be possible under the criteria for cameras of the Kent & Medway Safety Camera Partnership (which themselves reflect national guidance). We are, however, looking to signage options that will help to address this.

In recognition of continuing concern over illegal right turns at the Eynsford Road/ A20 junction, Kent Highways will also be enhancing the signs and lines at the Eynsford Road junction to emphasise the existing No Right Turn restriction in place. It is important that these measures are demonstrated to have been tried before any other measures to enforce the restriction are attempted; but the situation will be monitored and if justified those further measures could be introduced.

The work will take around two weeks to complete, commencing on 4 November 2024 (next Monday), with the signing and vegetation cut back taking place between the hours of 09:30 and 15:00.

Installation of the average speed cameras will take around four days to complete, commencing on 5 November 2024, between the hours of 20:00 and 05:00.

Lining and high friction surfacing replacement will take place between the hours of 20:00 and 05:00 during the week commencing 11 November.

All this is subject to potential change depending on weather conditions, and the works will be carried out under multi-way traffic lights.

This should represent an important step forward in terms of road safety in an area with a long and tragic record of accidents; and many of the other issues in the area will remain under Kent Highways’ attention, and mine as the local Member. The work does not stop here. 

The Space Wagon Takes Off

Congratulations to The Space at the Riverside Club for a wonderful launch of its Community Transport service this morning. This comprises a growing network of volunteer drivers, using their own cars, but also a bookable wheelchair accessible vehicle: the Space Wagon, the inspired winner of a competition to name it.

This builds on the remarkable work of Adrian Elms, Steve Boddington and everyone at The Space in combating isolation. Access to transport plays a vital role in this, yet in Kent (and across the country, especially outside the big cities) the bus industry is under severe pressure. This is why at Kent County Council we have stepped up our support for Community Transport. Last year we allocated over £500,000 to a dozen such schemes across the County. The Space was one of these, being awarded £44,000 in capital and £3,000 in start up costs. I was delighted to be able to support the successful bid.

Steve and Adrian both spoke at this morning’s launch, along with Cllr Lawrence Ball (Chairman of Sevenoaks District Council), Sally Coston of Eynsford Village Society and me. And the ribbon was cut by Mrs Diana Grant.

I was struck this morning by Steve Boddington’s remark that the focus on transport came out of the work that The Space was already doing, picking up another important need. I was also reminded that, while public sector bodies (including KCC) are financially very constrained, grants that are quite small in relation to our total budgets can help community initiatives like The Space Wagon to thrive.

To begin with at least, The Space’s community transport initiative will focus on Eynsford, Farningham and Lullingstone but will hopefully be able to extend to a wider area, the more so given the importance of access to medical appointments and the coming together of the Farningham and South Darenth practices.

Road improvements on the A20

There will be two closures on the A20 in the next couple of weeks to allow for highway improvements.

Next Tuesday (30 July) the road will be closed between 0430 and 0700 for surface dressing works. The closure will be between the junction with the A225 Dartford Road and the speed de-restriction signs outside Charton Manor Farm.

There will then be a 20mph speed limit in that part of the road until the concluding works (on Monday 5 August) to seal the surface dressing. This will use a technique called lockchip - which pretty much does what it says, with a bitumen coating binding in the chippings and reducing loose material on the road. 

The closure on the 5th will be for a relatively short period of time- approximately an hour - at some point between 0930 and 1530. It will, however, require a complete closure of that part of the road for that time. 

There will be similar works (surface dressing on the 30th, sealing on the 5th) elsewhere on the A20, at London Road Wrotham, but the timing will be different from those near Farningham. 

All these works are, of course, subject to weather but hopefully can be carried out in a way that minimises inconvenience to drivers and delivers road surface improvements.

Farningham 20mph scheme installed

As some residents will already be aware, the 20mph scheme in Farningham, long championed by the Parish Council, should be installed next week. Kent County Council will carry out the necessary works overnight between 8pm on Thursday 29 February and 5am the following morning. 

The 20mph scheme will be installed in High Street, London Road, Dartford Road, Hillside and Sparepenny Lane from the High Street/ London Road junction to outside Hampton Court Cottage. 

The Parish Council has strongly advocated for this scheme, incorporating it in the Highways Improvement Plan (HIP) that each Parish or Town Council develops with Kent Highways. I was pleased to support it from my Combined Member Grant; there was also funding from KCC’s Local Transport Plan, and the Parish Council contributed CIL funding to the earlier stages of the project. It’s taken some time, and quite a lot of work to get to this point but in just over a week the scheme should be in place.

Pedham Place and the Sevenoaks Local Plan

Yesterday I submitted my response to Sevenoaks District Council’s Regulation 18 consultation on the Local Plan (Plan 2040). This is copied below; it sets out my concerns about Options 2 and 3 put forward by the Council, both of which incorporate development proposals for 2,500 houses at Pedham Place. The implications of this for Sevenoaks North and Darent Valley, and for the northern parishes of Crockenhill, Eynsford, Farningham and Horton Kirby and South Darenth in particular are very concerning. The proposals for the Wasps stadium in the same area create a still more serious cumulative impact.

Eynsford Road drainage works set for 3 July

Long-running efforts to tackle the flooding problems in Eynsford Road, Farningham have now identified parts of the drainage network in the private road off South Hall Close that are believed to be central to the flooding problems and confirmed that tthey are heavily silted.

Access to this part of the drainage network is difficult and will require the use of specialist equipment via a chamber on the western side of the green in Oliver Crescent. This will require parking restrictions in Oliver Crescent, with residents able to use the green (subject to there not having been heavy rain beforehand) for parking for that day. There has been a letter drop to residents and signs put up, and Kent Highways officers will be there on the day to oversee entry to and exit from the green. The success of the project rests on these parking arrangements working effectively.

Once this cleansing has been done, there will also be cleansing and emptying of the soakaways in Eynsford Road itself. It is to be hoped that these works will make the lasting difference to the effectiveness of drainage in Eynsford Road that is much needed, but which previous efforts have been unable to deliver.

Drainage works in Farningham

Kent Highways is carrying out drainage works in Farningham High Street between Sparepenny Lane and the river east of Dartford Road. The particular focus of the works is to tackle problems affecting Lion Cottages, where surface water run-off from the road comes over the footway and into houses.  There will be a range of work done on pipes, catch pits and cleansing. The required road closure began on 3 June; the aim has been to get the works completed in advance of businesses reopening. The closure will be in two phases (river bridge to Dartford Road; then Dartford Road to Sparepenny Lane) to create the shortest possible diversion route at any given time.

These works are quite separate from ongoing investigations into the very long-standing flooding problems in Eynsford Road. Since my previous post in mid-April, a crew visited and successfully identified a hidden chamber and the full course of the pipe in the private road near South Hall Close; several previous attempts to identify this had been unsuccessful. This pipework is heavily silted and cleansing is being arranged of this and the whole related network. Accessing the system is quite complex (and may need to be done in Oliver Crescent) but a job should be raised for this shortly.

At the other end of the parish, works were as I reported due to be carried out at the intersection of Button Street with the A20 in early May. The drainage system there was cleansed and no defects found. However, the soakaways on either side of the M25 bridge need emptying and there is more work to be done with specialist equipment on one drain on the junction with the A20. Officers are awaiting a full CCTV report before ordering the follow up works.

Drainage works in Button Street tomorrow

Tomorrow (4 May) will see Kent Highways carry out drainage works in Button. Street, affecting both the Farningham and Swanley Village sections of the road. The road will be closed for up to two days.

There have been significant flooding problems at the junction with the A20, and CCTV and root cutting works will be carried out there. In addition, around 18 nearby gullies (in the area running from the junction with Farningham Hill Road to Wadard Terrace) will be cleansed and jetted.

There will also be extensive cleansing and jetting of around 10 gullies and 9 chambers in the area near Canada Heights and the M25 bridge, which has already seen significant attention, including examination of the Kent Highways network and work with Connect Plus to clear debris around the bridge to improve the operation of the Highways England ditches. Flooding problems in this part of the road have, however proved intractable.

A condition report will be provided to Kent Highways after the works.

Eynsford Road flooding: still more to do

The small section of Eynsford Road set back from the main A225 and near the junction with Farningham High Street has been subject to flooding problems for many years. I have been trying to get the matter resolved and have written about it here before. Kent County Council drainage engineers have been working on the site on a number of occasions over the last two years and I have been present at a number of site meetings.

Measures taken so far include cleaning the gullies and building up the kerb to deflect water as it comes down the hill on the main road. These have yielded some relief but have proved ineffectual when - as has been the case so often - there has been heavy rainfall.  Officers have identified the system in and around South Hall Close as a likely source of the continuing problem, and have sought to investigate it. However, it has proved hard to investigate a drainage system  running through private land and which has been altered in the past without these alterations having been documented. 

Between January and early March, KCC spent a total of seven days excavating the unregistered lane to locate the pipe. However, it could not be found, leading the Drainage Engineer to believe that at some point a section of it may have been removed. A new job has been raised to return to site and excavate in South Hall Close, where the pipe is undoubtedly still in existence and to work back from there. Once engineers can see what has happened to the pipe, whether it has been removed or redirected, they can then plan how to reconnect it with the existing system. This work should be carried out within the next 28 days - subject, of course, to the possible impact on contractors of staff sickness or absence in self-isolation because of Covid-19.

Residents in Eysnford Road have had to endure many years of flood problems, and recent severe weather has made the problem more acute. Hopefully, the changes to the paperwork can be identified and a solution found.

Responding to flooding

The heavy rainfall of the last couple of days, coming on top of a long period of wet weather, has triggered some 11 flood alerts across Kent. Kent County Council and its partners activated the County Emergency Centre (emergency planning is an area on which I was briefed extensively after becoming Leader of the Council) and has sought to respond to problems wherever they have arisen.

Some of the most severe pressures have been seen in and around Yalding, Culverstone, Boughton Monchelsea, the River Eden near Edenbridge, Marden and . In the Darent Valley, perhaps the most visible impact has been the overflowing of the Darent and the consequent closure of Riverside in Eynsford. That said, a number of rural roads have also been affected, as have long-standing problem areas such as the lowest-lying houses in Eynsford Road, Farningham, where work continues to find a solution.

For the present, the rainfall and consequent problems appear to be easing. However, with the prospect of wetter winters and a lot of this winter still to go, these issues are not going away. KCC and its partners have honed their responses since the severe impacts over the winter of 2013-14, and we are committing both funds and intense political attention to drainage and flood management, but there is a lot more to be done.

Reduced speed limits in Farningham and Horton Kirby

I have written before about the troubling crash history on the A20 as it passes through the edges of Farningham. A particularly horrific accident some eighteen months ago, resulting in the deaths of two young men, has since been demonstrated in the courts to be the result of driver behaviour (not that of the two young victims). However, as a continuous fast stretch of road, this section of the A20 is clearly susceptible to more serious crashes, resulting in deaths and serious injuries.

I have worked on this issue with Kent Highways officers and Farningham Parish Council, which has rightly been concerned. Kent Highways brought forward in August draft Traffic Regulation Orders (TROs) to address the issue. The philosophy has been to focus speed reductions in the area in which drivers are clearly approaching parts of the village, coming from the open road into a more residential area. Thus the speed limit will be reduced from 60mph to 40mph along the A20 Main Road/ Gorse Hill from the junction with London Road up to some 290 metres south-east of the junction with Eglantine Lane.

Similar reductions will apply on the A225 Dartford Road, which covers some of the northerly parts of Franingham (up to Calfstock Lane) and then becomes part of Horton Kirby. Speed along this road has also long been a concern to residents, and I have in the past worked with Kent Highways and local residents on signage improvements and the like. This, however, should be a more substantive measure. The new limit will apply the length of the road from the A20 roundabout to the border where Horton Kirby meets Sutton at Hone (which is the start of a 30mph zone).

Both sets of speed limits will be reinforced with a series of back to back repeater signs. There have been no objections to the draft TROs and so all is set to move ahead. The provisional date for implementation is 15 October, with a reserve date of a week later. This should be very welcome news.

Eynsford Road floods again

Amid today's heavy downpours, I was called by residents in Eysnford Road, Farningham, about flooding in the road that was affecting their properties.

I have written about this problem before, and have been taking it up with Kent Highays officers since last summer. Cleansing and other works have been carried out, and it did seem as though some real progress had been made. But today the problems recurred.

In fact, the earlier works may have had some effect. The picture at the top of this post was taken at the time when the flooding was at its strongest; the picture at the bottom was taken a couple of hours later, at the time when I was able to get there and meet residents. The water had run away more rapidly than would have been the case in the past; not, however, before the waters had reached unacceptably high levels. Clearly more substantial works are required, and I will once more take the issue up with Kent Highways.

Eynsford Road: getting under way

In my earlier report on action to tackle flooding at Eynsford Road, I expressed the hope that work could be carried out to  replace the manhole cover in South Hall Road before Christmas. In practice this was delayed because Kent Highways' contractors had to focus their work pre-Christmas on gritting as temperatures fell.

In the last few days, however, I have been told that the works in South Hall Close have been carried out - as a result, the CCTV survey should be carried out in the near future.

Drainage works in Eynsford Road

Residents in Eynsford Road, Farningham, experienced serious flooding in the autumn, and I have since been in frequent contact with Kent Highways officers who have been looking into the problem.

The latest update from the officers is that they are focusing on the main line that runs down the grass verge and then into South Hall Close. Officers will arrange for this to be cleansed and surveyed by a CCTV crew, improving the efficiency of the system as well as identifying any defects within it. There is a manhole cover in South Hall Close which is currently jammed shut and will need to be broken out and replaced before the CCTV crew can access the chamber. There have been  some delays because South Hall Close is a private road, but the works are now set to go ahead, hopefully before Christmas (though the demands of winter gritting might get in the way). Once the manhole is released, the CCTV survey and mainline cleansing can be carried out in the New Year.

Hopefully this will offer resolution of the issue for Eynsford Road residents.

A20 Button Street barrier to be abandoned

Kent Highways have announced this morning that the experimental traffic order blocking the turn in and out of Button Street at its junction with the A20 will be abandoned. The barrier to block the turn, which was installed in early October, will be removed next week. This will involve overnight works (between the hours of 9PM and 5AM) during the nights of 8-9 and 9-10 November and will require a full road closure at that time.

This follows a series of problems with the scheme. Many local residents were concerned about possible diversion of traffic up Button Street into Swanley Village, as well as the safety of traffic going down the hill to turn at Kings roundabout at the foot of Farningham Hill. While I recognised that the scheme was a serious attempt to deal with a genuine problem (there has been a pattern of serious accidents at the Button Street junction), I shared many of these concerns. To make matters worse, contractors installed unsuitable barriers, which resulted in the need for lane closures and 40mph speed limits on the section of the A20 near the junction. These would have been lifted when new, more appropriate barriers were installed; this will now happen when the experimental traffic order is terminated next week.

None of this makes for a happy story, and it is now back to the drawing board - the problem remains, though effective and affordable solutions are not easily available. I will meet Kent Highways officers shortly to examine the options.

A20 Button Street junction

The junction of Button Street with the A20 has been the scene of several serious accidents, one of them fatal, in the last few years. Many if not all of these accidents have involved vehicles making a right turn that takes them across the fast-moving traffic coming from the direction of the Swanley interchange.

Kent Highways are consequently installing (on a trial basis) a barrier to close off the central crossover and prevent right hand turns. This will be done under an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order which will operate over a six month period. Installation will require a five day programme of road and lane closures, which will start this coming Monday.

Many residents of Farningham and of Swanley Village have major concerns about this initiative, and I share these worries. Under the new arrangements, vehicles coming out of Button Street (including lorries coming from Watts Farm) and wanting to get to the Swanley interchange will have to head down the hill to Kings roundabout and then come back up. Some may seek to avoid this by more dangerous manoeuvres, and there is also the prospect of vehicles choosing to go instead through Swanley Village, which has more than its share of HGV problems.

With an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order, consultation (over a six month period) starts when the Order comes into force, so this will provide the opportunity for residents to set out concerns and objections. I will monitor these closely in the coming weeks, and continue to express my own concerns.

A20 fatal crash

Many people will have seen the reports of the shocking car crash, in which two young men were killed, on the A20 London Road near Farningham some ten days ago. The collision - invoking three vehicles - took place at around 1:20 am on Saturday 29 April, near the junction with Eglantine Lane. The two young men who lost their lives were both musicians: Mike Crampton, keyboard player with the Dartford band The Pisdicables, and his friend James Montegriffo. Eight other people were injured, one seriously.

I did not post about this at the time - it did not seem right to do so in the midst of an election campaign - but it is clearly important to track any information that emerges from now on as to what happened and why.

A lot of concerns have been raised about safety on the A20, and in particular around the junctions in Farningham - I have attended two site meetings seeking to address the issues in the last eighteen months. Kent Highways has identified the A20 junction with Button Street as having a particular concentration of accidents, and are looking to bring forward measures to address this, but there is less agreement and clarity regarding other potential problems on the A20.

At the time of writing, we have yet to see reports from Kent Police and others, and so it is impossible to draw any conclusions, or to say whether or not the horrific events were caused by features of the road that might be susceptible to highways engineering solutions. Reports indicate that the collision was head on rather than involving a vehicle emerging from a junction.

For now, our thoughts must be with the friends and families of the victims of the crash, but as more details emerge I will post further updates, including emerging conclusions as to any possible courses of action.

Wanted: a new Community Warden

When Steve Armstrong, the popular Community Warden for Crockenhill, Eynsford and Farningham, retired earlier this year, there was concern in the villages that he had served that there would not be an immediate replacement for him.

At the time, KCC's Community Warden Service made clear that, because recruitment, and in particular training is done in batches, there could not be an immediate replacement; however, they undertook to make clear as soon as possible when it would be possible to recruit.

The Service has now placed advertisements for posts in a number of areas in Kent, and in particular for two vacancies within the Sevenoaks District. This should, if there is a successful recruitment, enable posts to be filled in areas that previously had a Warden, of which Crockenhill, Eynsford and Farningham is one. 

Applications for the post should be in by 1 September, with interviews taking place in the middle of the month. Successful candidates will begin their four week training on 24 October, so hopefully a new Warden should be in place before the end of the year.

Steve Armstrong, community warden

Steve Armstrong, KCC's Community Warden for Eynsford, Farningham and Crockenhill, retires this week.

I have worked a lot with Steve over a number of years and he has been a huge asset to both the County Council and to the communities that he has served and where he is a well-known figure. A lot of the very strong reaction from Darent Valley Parish Councils to the Community Warden consultation in 2014 reflects the value put on Steve's work.

There has also been a lot of concern as to when and how a successor will be appointed. Having discussed the issue with Parish Councils, I took it up with both my Cabinet colleague, Mike Hill, and with the officers at KCC responsible for the warden service.

The difficulty is that recruitment and training of Community Wardens takes place in cohorts rather than on an individual basis, in part because of cost and in part to fit in with the schedules of partners in community safety such as Kent Police. However, officers have undertaken to give a clear timeline for the next round of recruitment as soon as possible. In the meantime, support for the communities that Steve has served will be provided (on, I understand, a proactive rather than a merely reactive basis) from wardens serving in Sevenoaks District and working with the local Community Safety Unit.

I will continue to monitor this with the aim of ensuring that a replacement is found as soon as possible, and that good cover is provided until then. In the meantime, I'm due for a coffee with Steve to thank him and wish him a happy retirement.

Further A225 works from 21 October

Last year we saw resurfacing work on the A225 in Eynsford,  running north from the Baptist church to the junction with Mill Lane.  The works were very welcome, though their timing - on the eve of the Kent Test - was much less so.

Kent Highways has committed to carrying out further works running north towards Farningham, from Mill Lane up to the Bessfield Lane junction. A notice has been issued and the works will start on 21 October. They will be carried out overnight (between 22:00 and 05:00), and will last for three days.  During that time there will be a road closure in the area affected, though only for the overnight period when the works are taking place; the road will remain open during the day. There may also be some disruption from the "milling" (an operation  to remove the existing road surface), and from the noise of vehicles beeping as they reverse. However, Kent Highways have pledged to seek to keep keep disruption to a minimum.

This will be a very welcome improvement to the road. Some particularly severe damage to the surface has already been dealt with through temporary patching.