Stop the Road! Camp & Rally: 29 – 30 September

1

August 21, 2012 by combehavendefenders

Combe Haven Defenders invite you to

STOP THE ROAD!

29 – 30 September,
Combe Haven Valley

A rally and camp to  celebrate the beauty of Combe Haven Valley and develop resistance to the planned road.

The Government and East Sussex County Council are planning to spend over £100 million building a three-mile  road from Bexhill to Hastings – a huge waste of money,  as well as an environmental disaster. Work on the road is due to start in January but together we can stop them.

Join us on Saturday 29 September. Assemble at 11am at Bexhill station or Bulverhythe (Sheep Wash Bridge, near the entrance to the Combe Haven Caravan Park), or 12 noon at Crowhurst station, to join one of 3 guided walks to the Camp site.

• Explore one of Hastings’ most tranquil places.
• Share a delicious home-made lunch after the rally.
• Hear John Stewart – Britain’s “most successful transport campaigner” – explain how we can stop the road.
• Learn about practical ways in which we can peacefully and effectively resist the construction of the road.

PLUS: fun, films, music, star gazing and more! Children welcome.

No alcohol or drugs please! Unlike the link road, we will leave the valley as pristine as we find it …

See here for practical info about the Camp, including, how to find the Camp, the programme of activities and what to bring with you.

Why should I come?

The arguments against building the new road are many. Here’s a quick
reminder of some of them:

•    The proposed link road between Hastings and Bexhill will cost 100
million of public money and was rated as the worst value for money scheme
in the country by the Department for Transport. To put it into
perspective, a new railway station at Glynde Gap to help ease traffic
would cost around 5 million.
•    The road will increase traffic in the local area by around 14% and is
likely to cause significant new congestion problems on the Ridge and in
Bexhill.
•    Run-away climate change is one of the greatest threats we face. Yet the
government are sponsoring a new wave of road-building across the country.
This money could be much better spent on improving public transport.
•    The road will cause irrevocable harm to a uniquely diverse and tranquil
wildlife habitat, which is also a very important green space for local
people.
•    The council’s plan to build a business park alongside the road may
actually draw investment and jobs away from our town centre.

The legal fight to stop the road is almost exhausted and construction
could begin in January. We need to gather together and plan what we can do
now to stop this road being built. The camp will be an opportunity to meet
each other, hear from experts in direct action and anti-road campaigning,
and make plans together.

For more info contact Combe Haven Defenders,
07926 423 033, combehavendefenders [at] gmail.com