Elm Grove and Queens Park Road close at their junction from Monday 2 November while the council rebuilds it, with completion expected by 28 February 2027.

The junction of Elm Grove and Queens Park Road in Brighton will close from Monday 2 November for a rebuild. The council expects the work to take about four months, finishing by 28 February 2027.

Brighton & Hove City Council published the notice on 21 October. It says contractors need the roads shut “to carry out junction redesign works” (council notice, 21 October 2026).

What closes

The order closes:

  • Elm Grove for about 120 metres in both directions from the junction
  • Queens Park Road for about 100 metres from the junction
  • Bernard Road, Totland Road and Sandown Road where they meet Elm Grove

Totland Road’s one-way order is suspended for its whole length, so residents can still get in and out while its end is shut.

Pedestrian access stays open, and the council says a diversion will be signed for drivers. The notice does not name the diversion route.

The order runs from 2 November “for eighteen months or until such sooner time as the works are completed”. That is the standard legal ceiling for a temporary closure. The date to plan around is the anticipated finish of 28 February.

What is being built

The council consulted on the design two years ago. Its aim was “to upgrade old signals infrastructure and improve the layout of the junction”, making it “safer, particularly for pedestrians, greener and more efficient for traffic flow” (council project page, Your Voice).

The survey ran from 4 November to 7 December 2024. At the time the council said it expected construction in 2025. A later update said officers were working to add more green space, and possibly a Beryl bike hub and cycle storage.

The project page has not been updated since. It does not show the final design, and the council has published no news release about the start of work.

Why this junction

The scheme goes back to 2023. That September, councillors on the Transport and Sustainability committee were asked to bring forward work on Elm Grove, including an upgrade of the Elm Grove and Queens Park Road signals, which needed replacing “because of their age” (council, 26 September 2023).

The same report asked them to stop the Hanover and Tarner Liveable Neighbourhood pilot, which had not won residents’ support. It proposed moving £400,000 of the pilot’s £1 million budget to pay for the junction and for new crossings further along Elm Grove.

What it means for you

  • If you drive through the junction, on Elm Grove or Queens Park Road, expect to follow the signed diversion from 2 November until the end of February.
  • If you live on Bernard Road, Sandown Road or Totland Road, your road will be shut at the Elm Grove end. Totland Road’s one-way rule is lifted for the duration, so watch for oncoming traffic.
  • If you catch the bus, Brighton & Hove Buses had not published any diversion or stop changes for the closure when we checked its service updates on 26 October. Check its service updates page before 2 November.
  • If you walk, the pavements stay open.

We will add the bus changes and the diversion route to our Brighton roadworks and travel page once they are published.

Sources