Comment on Rother District Local Plan: Main Modifications to the Proposed Submission Core Strategy. Chapter 8: Bexhill modification 8.1: Delete part (v) (b) of Policy BX1: 'remove provision for a new railway station adjacent to Ravenside Retail Park'.

I object to this modification for the following reasons:
1. It conflicts with RDC policy SRM1 which seeks to mitigate the effects of climate change by promoting sustainable transport.
2. It conflicts with policy TR1 which commits the council to making 'improvements in the availability, quality and efficiency of sustainable transport'
3. It conflicts with RDC's responsibilities under the Climate Change Act 2008 to take action to reduce carbon emissions.
Proposed change to the plan: Rother District Council should reinstate the policy and continue to pursue the objective of building a new station at Ravenside Retail Park.

I also note that a station at Glyne Gap is an aspiration specified in the East Sussex County Council Local Transport Plan 3 (LTP3) - 4.18 and 4.52.

A new station would also strongly enforce an be highly compatible with all the 'Transport Specific Objectives' and 'High Level LTP Objectives' described in Table 1 of 2.6 of LTP3.

The 'Transport Specific Objective' with the highest score in the table 'Acces to jobs, services and lesiure' - would be strongly reinforced by a new station: it would be available to all, including 'persuadable' car drivers - those willing to consider a mode shift to a high quality available alternative. The station would therefore have a high 'social equity' component.

The study used by RDC assumes that only 1 train per hour would stop at the proposed new station, whereas new signaling currently installed would, in fact, allow an increase to 2 trains per hour to stop, which increases the viability of the proposition.

I wish to see the Core Strategy retain provision for a new railway station adjacent to Ravenside Retail Park.