All change at Ravenside!

And they could herald a railway station for Glyne Gap.

Shoppers arriving on Monday found that work on revising the car park lay-out at Ravenside had begun - with a big section taken temporarily out of commission.

The expansion programme could take until August, owners Land Securities said this week.

The start of work coincides with the announcement that the county council in association with partners including Rother are seeking major funding for a 2m station scheme.

The project is a key regeneration goal aimed at reducing car-reliance and easing trunk road congestion.

When finished, there will be new traffic lights at the junction of Brett Drive and De La Warr Road.

Shoppers complained of chaos on Monday with no advanced warning that a large section of the car park had been fenced off and the one-way flow replaced by a temporary two-way system.

Car park revision is only one aspect of major change under way at Ravenside.

The Office of Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott gave the go-ahead for a major extension to Tesco's Ravenside store last November, ruling that it would not significantly impact on A259 trunk road traffic or on town centre turnover.

Plans to increase the store's floorspace had caused controversy when initially submitted in 2000 with planners concerned about increased trunk road congestion and loss of custom to Bexhill shops if the expansion went ahead.

The main Ravenside car park is being revised with parking arranged in bays at 90 degrees to the existing layout.