A27 Arundel bypass plans deferred until at least 2025

The Department for Transport announced the plans have been deferred until at least 2025

Plans for a bypass to take traffic on the A27 away from Arundel in West Sussex have been put on hold.

The improvements at Crossbush have been deferred until at least 2025, the Department for Transport has announced.

The deferral forms part of wider changes to national transport schemes due to financial pressures caused by Covid and the war in Ukraine.

The MP for Arundel and South Downs said he was "disappointed" by the decision to delay the upgrades.

"I will continue to support improvements to alleviate the congestion and rat running which impacts many rural communities and for our county's roads to be made safer," Andrew Griffith said.

In a written ministerial statement, secretary of state for transport Mark Harper said the deferral was due to the additional time needed to accommodate environmental and design changes, but confirmed the road investment scheme would continue.

The preferred route avoids the South Downs National Park

The preferred route, revealed by National Highways in October 2020, avoids the South Downs National Park, but is close to the villages of Binstead, Walberton and Tortington.

National Highways said it had modified the plans after feedback from locals.

Follow BBC South East on Facebook, on Twitter, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail].