Fire-damaged hotel road closure causes delays

The closure of a stretch of road in Brighton over fears a fire-damaged hotel may collapse has caused major traffic delays.

Part of the A259 Kings Road is closed in both directions between the aquarium and East Street as the Royal Albion Hotel and its scaffolding are "at risk of catastrophic failure", according to an engineer report.

Brighton & Hove City Council said it had asked its owners, Britannia Hotels, to make the structure safe and erect safety barriers.

Frustrated residents wrote on social media that the traffic was "horrendous" and warned "don't bother going into Brighton unless you really need to".

There are significant delays along the Marine Parade near Volk's Electric Railway to Sea Life Brighton.

The road closure has also impacted traffic around Old Steine Garden, West Street and St James's Street.

Stagecoach South said: "Coastliner 700 and Route 17 are facing delays due to heavy congestion around Brighton city centre due to road closure on the A259.

"We apologise for the inconvenience caused."

The council said works will continue until next weekend.

A spokesperson for the Brighton Half Marathon, which is due to take place on 2 March, said they were "aware" of the situation.

They said: "We are working closely with the council and will update runners should there be any impact on the Brighton Half Marathon course route."

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