SUPERMARKET giant Sainsbury claims Brighton traders are losing £100,000 a week due to controversial town centre road works. The figure was revealed last night during a meeting of angry London Road traders. David Moore, Sainsbury's London Road branch manager, said the loss spread over a year would amount to £5 million. He said: "Most businesses have seen an average 30 per cent drop in trade." Some businesses at last night's meeting said they want compensation from Brighton and Hove Council and others threatened to stop paying their rates. All are demanding the authority provide free parking to bring back lost customers. More than 100 angry shop bosses attended the meeting at the London Road Co-Op to discuss their plight caused by the £4 million road scheme. They blame the project for traffic chaos and driving away shoppers. Some claimed to have lost 60 per cent of their trade since work on the new scheme started. They say the nearby York Hill multi-storey car park is never more than a third full because the road works make it difficult to reach, and the council should offer free parking there. London Road Traders' chairman Roy Brown said: "We feel they have been pushing shoppers both ways past London Road. It's like we are a little island, an oasis and no one knows we're here." Sainsbury's store manager Mr Moore said his 150-employee store had seen between a five and seven per cent fall in turnover. He said: "All the businesses, large and small, have been impacted by a downturn in business. We are keen to see what happens when the cones come up." Gary Bennett, manager of the Bat and Ball pub in Oxford Street, said: "The London Road shopping centre is seizing up. The works are putting people off coming here." Mary Mears, of C.H. Mears, greengrocers, said: "The council is not going to change the scheme. They know it's wrong but they have got to stick with it. We need to bring the cars here or none of is going to survive." They thrashed out a list of proposals they intend presenting to the council.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.