Western Road is due to reopen on Saturday 7 November, and two days later a red route will start on the road between Holland Road and Montpelier Road, banning stopping and waiting at any time.
Brighton and Hove City Council has set out both dates on its own pages. The road has been closed since 28 September while contractors rebuilt it, and the council says the reconstruction is planned to be finished by Friday 6 November.
When Western Road reopens
The council’s weekly update says the final surface on the western section was due to be finished on Friday 30 October, and surfacing of the eastern section began on Saturday 31 October. In the middle section, the area affected by a shallow water main was being fully excavated, ready for the remaining road layers and surfacing from Monday 2 November.
Road marking is planned for 5, 6 and 7 November, starting at the eastern end. The council says it will follow behind, removing fencing and preparing finished sections for reopening. All reconstruction work is planned to be completed by Friday 6 November, with Western Road expected to fully reopen on Saturday 7 November once the final road markings are in.
The council also said it planned to allow westbound buses to use Western Road and Bedford Place from Monday 2 November, which it expects to cut journey times by around five minutes.
What the red route means from 9 November
The council made the Brighton & Hove (Western Road) (Red Route) Experimental Order 2026, reference TRO-21-2026, on 15 October. It comes into force on 9 November 2026 and can run for no more than eighteen months.
On a red route, no one may park, stop or wait on the road at any time, unless they are in a marked bay or covered by an exemption. The order covers the whole width of the highway, including the footway.
The exemptions listed in the order are:
Emergency services: emergency service vehicles parked during an emergency.
Works vehicles: vehicles used for building, demolition, excavation, maintenance or utility works next to where they stop, and council refuse and recycling collection.
Scaffolding and glazing: vehicles loading or unloading scaffolding or glazing at a building next to the restricted road.
Blue Badge holders: stopping to let a Blue Badge holder board or leave the vehicle.
Taxis and private hire: stopping to let passengers board or get out.
Buses: stopping at a bus stop for as long as passengers need to board or get off.
The new loading and disabled bays
The order sets out 11 loading bays that can be used at any time and 4 disabled badge holder parking places, also at any time.
Loading bays on the north side: 21.5 metres east of Holland Road (12 metres long), 9.5 metres east of York Road (10 metres), 16.6 metres east of Norfolk Road (12 metres), 14 metres east of Borough Street (10 metres) and 7.5 metres east of York Road (10 metres).
Loading bays on the south side: from the western boundary of number 57 (12 metres), west of Brunswick Street West (16 metres), from number 30 (24 metres), west from number 31a (16 metres), east of Bedford Place (16 metres) and east of the eastern leg of Norfolk Square (11 metres).
Disabled bays: one on the south side at number 57, one at number 30, one east of Norfolk Road on the north side and one east of the eastern leg of Norfolk Square on the south side, each 6.6 metres long.
Why the council says it is doing it
The council’s statement of reasons says the order is for avoiding danger to people and traffic, preventing the likelihood of danger, and keeping vehicles moving on the road. It describes Western Road as a key corridor for buses, cyclists, pedestrians and other traffic.
It says red routes are part of the Bus Service Improvement Plan, with the main benefit expected to be better bus journey times and reliability. It also lists safer conditions for walkers and cyclists, dedicated disabled and loading bays for access and servicing, smoother traffic flow, and less obstructive parking at junctions and crossings.
The council says it is introducing the measures on an experimental basis so it can assess their impact on traffic, road safety, bus reliability, cycling, loading, accessibility and the wider road network before deciding whether to make them permanent, change them or remove them.
The road to this point
According to the statement of reasons, Cabinet first agreed on 20 March 2025 that a red route on Western Road should be introduced under an experimental order. A public engagement exercise followed in November 2025, and Cabinet approved implementation on 17 September 2026.
ImJustBrighton has followed the story from the start. Read our reports on the rebuild and red route plan, the closure and bus diversions, the water main burst and the Cabinet decision.
How to have your say
The council will decide in due course whether to keep the red route indefinitely. Anyone who wants to object to it continuing can do so in writing within six months of 9 November, which means no later than 9 May 2027.
Objections can be emailed to TROcomment@brighton-hove.gov.uk, made through the council’s traffic regulation orders page, or posted to the Corporate Director City Operations, c/o TRO Team, G40 Hove Town Hall, Norton Road, Hove BN3 3BQ. Always quote TRO-21-2026.
Anyone who wants to question whether the order is within the council’s legal powers has six weeks from the date it was made to apply to the High Court.
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