It's a comment that I have heard increasingly the older I have become. Is it just me, or has the world just become a more irritating place to live in?
I am sure that there is a secret department out there devoted to doing things that get my goat.
The latest example:
I came home late last night from a long day at work, and though I was hallucinating. There is a huge, soon to be illuminated, sign blocking the pavement where the phone box used to be on St Margarets Road, near Westbourne Close.
Not only is it very close to a bike rack, which will make getting a buggy past very difficult, it is vile.
I assume that someone at Richmond Council must have known about this, as I suppose you can't go digging up large parts of pavement without telling someone.
I have asked for clarification, but if you notice a large paper bag over it one day, it is probably me...
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Small world
These parking tickets are getting everywhere.
I went to a show yesterday, and met someone who lives in St Margarets who, guess what, just got a parking ticket through the post! Doesn't that make me popular...
Anyway, I just got the following e-mail from one of our ever helpful councillors (and unusually for me, I say that without even a trace of irony. God forbid, I am thinking that I might end up voting Liberal next time round...)
"
Nigel
The signs were placed at the following locations prior to start of enforcement but we take your point and Cllr Geoff Acton has requested another sign be put near Tesco
Regards
Cllr Ben Khosa
445 The Barons
446 St Margarets Road
447 Crown Road
448 St Margarets Road
449 Bridge Road
450 Amyand Park Road
"
I have written back, asking that they be big signs, not those silly little CYA signs they usually put up about CCTV!
I went to a show yesterday, and met someone who lives in St Margarets who, guess what, just got a parking ticket through the post! Doesn't that make me popular...
Anyway, I just got the following e-mail from one of our ever helpful councillors (and unusually for me, I say that without even a trace of irony. God forbid, I am thinking that I might end up voting Liberal next time round...)
"
Nigel
The signs were placed at the following locations prior to start of enforcement but we take your point and Cllr Geoff Acton has requested another sign be put near Tesco
Regards
Cllr Ben Khosa
445 The Barons
446 St Margarets Road
447 Crown Road
448 St Margarets Road
449 Bridge Road
450 Amyand Park Road
"
I have written back, asking that they be big signs, not those silly little CYA signs they usually put up about CCTV!
Monday, June 11, 2007
When good ideas go bad
The council recently applied for permission to use CCTV images to issues parking tickets to people misusing the loading bay, bus stop and double yellow lines outside Tesco. This is a move that I have been advocating for some time, if only to show the true scale of the problem.
Sadly, it has been implemented in rather an unfortunate way.
Ideally, a notice would have gone up warning people that CCTV was being used for parking control, as the ideal number of parking tickets would have been zero, as people moved on to park or load legally.
Instead, a large number of tickets seem to have been issued, in some cases, several to the same car as a batch of images has been analysed.
Sadly, this makes the whole exercise look like a cynical revenue raising scheme, rather than a positive way of reducing the traffic issues in St Margarets.
The Council needs to erect prominent signs along that stretch of road so that people are aware that CCTV is and has been used to issue parking tickets, to deter people before they get a ticket, not after.
Not everyone is aware of the restrictions, and some people assume that because everyone seems to park there with impunity, the restrictions do not really apply, which is the Council's fault in the first place!
Oh well, you try...
Sadly, it has been implemented in rather an unfortunate way.
Ideally, a notice would have gone up warning people that CCTV was being used for parking control, as the ideal number of parking tickets would have been zero, as people moved on to park or load legally.
Instead, a large number of tickets seem to have been issued, in some cases, several to the same car as a batch of images has been analysed.
Sadly, this makes the whole exercise look like a cynical revenue raising scheme, rather than a positive way of reducing the traffic issues in St Margarets.
The Council needs to erect prominent signs along that stretch of road so that people are aware that CCTV is and has been used to issue parking tickets, to deter people before they get a ticket, not after.
Not everyone is aware of the restrictions, and some people assume that because everyone seems to park there with impunity, the restrictions do not really apply, which is the Council's fault in the first place!
Oh well, you try...
Thursday, June 07, 2007
The Price of Protest
About 75p a day at the moment.
Using my specially purchased laminator, I produced some rather fetching posters to hang around the offending crossings to solicit local opinion (actually, to get fellow protesters involved, which when you think about it is a whole different thing)
It took me a little while to master how to tie them around the poles at the crossing (It's a real science. Unless very well secured, they spin in the wind)
Anyhow, I was pleased with the results, and a number of people stopped to read, and to comment about how they too felt the crossing was dangerous (and one suggested it depended on whether you pushed the button or not. Thanks for that mature consideration, mate).
So, I strolled off to the station this morning, and guess what. In a fit of unusual efficiency, the rubbish guys have taken them down. Can I get the Council to pick up my rubbish once a week without spilling it all over the road? No. But a legitimate piece of local protest literature. Whipped away as if it had never been there. Now I understand why people paste posters on now (which is genuinely messy and hideously illegal).
So, it looks like 75p and 10 minutes a day out of my life for the next few weeks, and I do battle with that most unlikely enemy of democracy, the road sweeper...
Using my specially purchased laminator, I produced some rather fetching posters to hang around the offending crossings to solicit local opinion (actually, to get fellow protesters involved, which when you think about it is a whole different thing)
It took me a little while to master how to tie them around the poles at the crossing (It's a real science. Unless very well secured, they spin in the wind)
Anyhow, I was pleased with the results, and a number of people stopped to read, and to comment about how they too felt the crossing was dangerous (and one suggested it depended on whether you pushed the button or not. Thanks for that mature consideration, mate).
So, I strolled off to the station this morning, and guess what. In a fit of unusual efficiency, the rubbish guys have taken them down. Can I get the Council to pick up my rubbish once a week without spilling it all over the road? No. But a legitimate piece of local protest literature. Whipped away as if it had never been there. Now I understand why people paste posters on now (which is genuinely messy and hideously illegal).
So, it looks like 75p and 10 minutes a day out of my life for the next few weeks, and I do battle with that most unlikely enemy of democracy, the road sweeper...
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Cross about the Crossing
My battles against bureaucracy in St Margarets are not limited to Tesco, although you could be forgiven for thinking so.
My latest fight is again Transport for London (TfL) . There is a pedestrian crossing just near our house, just north of the A316. In theory, my son is of the age that he can walk to school by himself, which is not much use as he has a younger sister at the same school who needs an adult. But it would be useful for coming home after late school activities
To do this, he has to cross a footbridge, and this one pedestrian crossing.
In theory, you press the button, the traffic light turns red, the green man goes green, and then you cross, saf in the knowledge that the cars have stopped. That has been my experience of pedestrian crossings up until I met this one.
It is in a funny location, just north of a major arterial road, but on a sharp corner. And you often can't see people waiting to use the crossing.
But even that in itself is not the biggest problem.
The way the lights are phased, the pedestrian crossing turns red, as the lights on the A316 go green. So lots of impatient motorists, pull away on the green light, and only by the time it is too late to they realise that they are now on a red going north.
I have seen a large number of vehicles go through, some never realising, some screeching to a halt half way across the crossing. Exactly 10 feet too late to save the life of whoever they have just run over.
Some time ago, I took the matter up with TfL. The first analysis of the situation showed that the crossing was not active for long enough in any event. It is supposed to be red for 13 seconds (the things you find out), and it was only red for 10. So they changed it, somehow missing my point that they needed to re-phase the lights to ensure there was no traffic passing through, not just extend the time they left pedestrians waiting to get knocked over.
So I tried again.
This time they sent a man out for an hour in a bright yellow jacket to see if anyone jumped the lights. Well, hardly surprising no-one did as he looked for all the world like a traffic policemen, and was probably visible from space!
I popped out there for 10 minutes today until I saw someone jump the lights, and then retired, smug. (Yes you white van LC52 NVG)
It's not just me, as a number of other local people have seen the same thing. I am just trying to rally the troops to get something done.
The answer? Another Jiglu space! Yes http://crossing.jiglu.com will be the focus of the latest campaign. I am turning into Victor Meldrew, so help me God. It's when I fight the council to take the apostrophe out of the road sign round the corner (Not St Margaret's, chaps) that you will really have to take pity on my wife...
My latest fight is again Transport for London (TfL) . There is a pedestrian crossing just near our house, just north of the A316. In theory, my son is of the age that he can walk to school by himself, which is not much use as he has a younger sister at the same school who needs an adult. But it would be useful for coming home after late school activities
To do this, he has to cross a footbridge, and this one pedestrian crossing.
In theory, you press the button, the traffic light turns red, the green man goes green, and then you cross, saf in the knowledge that the cars have stopped. That has been my experience of pedestrian crossings up until I met this one.
It is in a funny location, just north of a major arterial road, but on a sharp corner. And you often can't see people waiting to use the crossing.
But even that in itself is not the biggest problem.
The way the lights are phased, the pedestrian crossing turns red, as the lights on the A316 go green. So lots of impatient motorists, pull away on the green light, and only by the time it is too late to they realise that they are now on a red going north.
I have seen a large number of vehicles go through, some never realising, some screeching to a halt half way across the crossing. Exactly 10 feet too late to save the life of whoever they have just run over.
Some time ago, I took the matter up with TfL. The first analysis of the situation showed that the crossing was not active for long enough in any event. It is supposed to be red for 13 seconds (the things you find out), and it was only red for 10. So they changed it, somehow missing my point that they needed to re-phase the lights to ensure there was no traffic passing through, not just extend the time they left pedestrians waiting to get knocked over.
So I tried again.
This time they sent a man out for an hour in a bright yellow jacket to see if anyone jumped the lights. Well, hardly surprising no-one did as he looked for all the world like a traffic policemen, and was probably visible from space!
I popped out there for 10 minutes today until I saw someone jump the lights, and then retired, smug. (Yes you white van LC52 NVG)
It's not just me, as a number of other local people have seen the same thing. I am just trying to rally the troops to get something done.
The answer? Another Jiglu space! Yes http://crossing.jiglu.com will be the focus of the latest campaign. I am turning into Victor Meldrew, so help me God. It's when I fight the council to take the apostrophe out of the road sign round the corner (Not St Margaret's, chaps) that you will really have to take pity on my wife...
Monday, June 04, 2007
Corporate Responsibility
The question, I suppose, is who is ultimately responsible for keeping the streets free of traffic outside the local Tesco.
In the old Olivers days, there was never the constant presence of cars there is today. The shop was very local, and almost everyone who used it walked to it.
Today, the demographic is quite different.
You see commuters in cars and vans stopping for cash and other items. What was once a local store is now a magnet for people passing through St Margarets.
So, who should sort out the mess it has caused? Should we have the Tesco chairman camped outside thanking people for their custom, but asking them to be more considerate to the local community. Or should the polluter not pay?
I think that it is a joint problem. Tesco should encourage people to use the parking that is available, or should rent some space over the road. The council should continue its heavy enforcement presence to remind people that they are affecting an entire community with their thoughtless actions.
I am not anti-Tesco, and can be seen there on a regular basis. But I continue to advocate a policy of St Margarets first. Perhaps it's time to watch "Passport to Pimlico" again to see if I can pick up a few tips...
In the old Olivers days, there was never the constant presence of cars there is today. The shop was very local, and almost everyone who used it walked to it.
Today, the demographic is quite different.
You see commuters in cars and vans stopping for cash and other items. What was once a local store is now a magnet for people passing through St Margarets.
So, who should sort out the mess it has caused? Should we have the Tesco chairman camped outside thanking people for their custom, but asking them to be more considerate to the local community. Or should the polluter not pay?
I think that it is a joint problem. Tesco should encourage people to use the parking that is available, or should rent some space over the road. The council should continue its heavy enforcement presence to remind people that they are affecting an entire community with their thoughtless actions.
I am not anti-Tesco, and can be seen there on a regular basis. But I continue to advocate a policy of St Margarets first. Perhaps it's time to watch "Passport to Pimlico" again to see if I can pick up a few tips...
Not quite the Last Post
Not everyone has found their way over to the blog at Jiglu.com. So an update on the current situation.
The good news is that Tesco really do seem to be sticking to the loading hours, and trying to minimise the number of lorries.
The bad news is that the parking situation is becoming farcical.
The restrictions are pretty clear, and a fairly long strip has double yellow lines. None of this deters people from parking pretty much anywhere along that part of St Margarets Road, including in the bus stop, while they stop for cash.
Things are getting so bad that the overspill sees people parking over the edge of some local roads, making passing near impossible (I saw this last night on the close opposite Bridge Road)
Our new local councillors have been good about pushing the issue of the lorries. Allegedly, the council now has the power to issue Parking Tickets just using the CCTV. I have yet to enquire if they have done so. Get in touch, and tell them how you feel. The details are here
The good news is that Tesco really do seem to be sticking to the loading hours, and trying to minimise the number of lorries.
The bad news is that the parking situation is becoming farcical.
The restrictions are pretty clear, and a fairly long strip has double yellow lines. None of this deters people from parking pretty much anywhere along that part of St Margarets Road, including in the bus stop, while they stop for cash.
Things are getting so bad that the overspill sees people parking over the edge of some local roads, making passing near impossible (I saw this last night on the close opposite Bridge Road)
Our new local councillors have been good about pushing the issue of the lorries. Allegedly, the council now has the power to issue Parking Tickets just using the CCTV. I have yet to enquire if they have done so. Get in touch, and tell them how you feel. The details are here
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