Roads closed in East Sussex after more snow

In East Sussex, the snow was falling heavily this afternoon forcing three roads to be closed. In Eastbourne, the area around Warren Hill, Beachy Head Road and Upper Dukes Drive was closed on Monday. The A259 between Eastbourne and Friston is open and passable with care but it is likely to deteriorate overnight. Fairlight Road and Battery Hill near Fairlight is also closed and in West Sussex the A29 at Bury (Bury Hill) is also closed. Sergeant Dan Pitcher from the Road Policing Unit in Polegate said: “Please drive carefully in the snowy conditions and remember your journey could take longer than you anticipate. “Allow more time to stop in the snowy and slippery conditions.” East Sussex County Council reported that its gritters will be out again from 7pm gritting the primary routes and then the secondary routes. Tomorrow they will start gritting roads in the county from 5am. Police are warning drivers to make allowances for the return of the wintry weather as road policing units have been called to a number of crashes caused by the snowy conditions today. A number of schools were closed today, primariy in the Hastings area and on the Sussex/Kent border. These included: Castledown Primary School, Hastings. College Central, Eastbourne, Robertsbridge, St Leonards and Tile Barn Road, Hastings. Dudley Infant School, Hastings. Elphinstone Community School, Hastings. Icklesham Church of England Primary School. Peasmarsh Church of England Primary School. Silverdale Primary School, St Leonards. William Parker Sports College, Hastings. Cuckmere House School, Seaford. Guestling-Bradshaw Church of England Primary. Netherfield Church of England Primary School. New Horizons School, St Leonards. Robertsbridge Community College. Rye College. Saxon Mount School, St Leonards. St Leonards Church of England Primary School, St Leonards. St Paul’s Church Of England Primary School, St Leonards. Torfield School, Hastings closed. With more snow predicted across the region overnight, East Sussex County Council will be keeping in close contact with schools and colleges, many of whom were forced to close during the last cold snap in January. Police are warning motorists to be careful on the roads. A police spokesman said: “There’s not a great deal of snow falling at the moment, but the temperature is hovering at or just below freezing and the roads are slippery in places. Some drivers are just not making allowances for the conditions. “In icy conditions it will take a lot longer to bring your vehicle to a stop. “Allow greater stopping distances between you and the vehicle in front - at least ten times the normal distance - and keep your speed appropriate to the conditions. Keep your driving smooth, avoid sudden turning, braking or acceleration. Areas under trees, in shadow and on bridges tend to remain colder for longer so beware that there may still be ice patches even if the rest of the road is clear. “Before setting off drivers should make sure that mirrors and all windows and lights are clear from ice, frost or condensation. On cold mornings it is all too easy to jump in your car and drive off, but it is important that you have a good view of the road all around you from the start. “Spring may be just around the corner, but while it may be warm and cosy inside your car, it’s cold, icy and potentially very hazardous outside it. Please think!” To compound the misery for commuters today, there were delays on Southern Rail between Horsham and Barnham because of the conditions, and then major delays this afternoon on trains between East Sussex and London after a person was hit by a train at Horley. Southern Rail said there were major delays in the Gatwick Airport area until 7pm. The Met Office is predicting further spells of snow across Kent and East Sussex tonight, with the possibility of gales or severe gales along the coast. There is the prospect of widespread frost. Tomorrow, temperatures will hover between minus 2c and 2c with outbreaks of light snow around at first. Dry and largely sunny conditions will follow as the wind slowly eases.