“… George Osborne wanted HS2 very much against the advice of his officials. Osborne saw a high-speed railway as a way of increasing the Tories’ appeal in the North, while his officials saw it as a vanity project which would bring far less benefit than smaller-scale improvements. Osborne pushed HS2 because he wanted to be able to boast that Britain had the fastest railway in the world (in spite of its geography not justifying that).

It is bizarre that the government has now cancelled electrification projects across the North of England, so that Trans-Pennine services will continue to be provided with dirty diesel trains (conflicting with its announcement of a ban on new diesel cars from 2040), while pushing ahead with a 225 mph railway between Manchester, Leeds and London.

It doesn’t make much economic sense, but, as Macpherson questioned, does it even make political sense? Build a fast railway from north to south while simultaneously ignoring commuter services in the North and you send a pretty powerful message to northerners: go south, young man. That’s where the big opportunities are. If it is all supposed to be about boosting the North why is so much of the budget allocated to rebuilding Euston station.

HS2 is really designed around ministers’ lifestyles: it enables them to travel to the North to make an announcement, cut a ribbon or close a factory, and still be back at Westminster in time to vote and have a subsidised dinner. Meanwhile, the public transport which Londoners take for granted continues to be denied to the North. …”

https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2017/09/a-civil-servant-has-revealed-that-hs2-was-a-political-vanity-project/

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

11 Sep 2017

Posted under

Developers/ Development, Environment (local), Transport (local)

“Britain flouting duty to protect citizens from toxic air pollution – UN”

“… “Air pollution continues to plague the UK,” he said. “I am alarmed that despite repeated judicial instruction, the UK government continues to flout its duty to ensure adequate air quality and protect the rights to life and health of its citizens. It has violated its obligations.” …

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/sep/10/uk-flouting-duty-to-cut-air-pollution-deaths-says-un-human-rights-report

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

10 Sep 2017

Posted under

DCC, Environment (local), Stuart Hughes, Transport (local)

Comments

1 Comment

DCC transport supremo Stuart Hughes on the spot next week

“On Monday Devon Live launches a series of special reports into the county’s congestion problems and the impact that pollution is having on people’s lives.

Gridlocked Devon will look at some of the major challenges caused by congestion across the county and find out what is being done to encourage people to use other modes of transport. …

Investigations throughout the week will reveal the attitude of local authorities to sustainable travel and highlight some of Devon’s pollution hotspots.

Gridlocked Devon will culminate on Friday with a Facebook Live debate tackling some of the major travel problems facing the county.

To submit a question email

newsdesk@devonlive.com

http://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/gridlocked-devon-problems-facing-devons-454209

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East Devon Watch

Posted on

10 Sep 2017

Posted under

EDDC, Seaton/ Colyford / Colyton, Tourism, Transport (local)

BBC national news takes up story of tourist bus pulling out of Seaton and Colyton due to elderly residents objecting to it

Since when was an EDDC coach park, where EDDC receives the revenue and the land is owned by EDDC, a town council problem?

“An open-top bus service has been axed because of “hostility and tirades” from residents, its operator says.

Drivers of the Jurassic Mule service, on the Devon and Dorset coast, have been verbally abused and a bus depot entrance was “deliberately blocked”.
The Mendip Mule Motorbus service runs through Beer, Colyton and Seaton in Devon, and on to Lyme Regis and Charmouth in Dorset.

Issues over parking had arisen in Seaton and cars had been badly parked, intentionally, across Colyton bus depot’s entrance, owner Derek Gawn said.

He said the company used a bus park in Seaton, provided by East Devon District Council for use by buses and coaches on a pay-and-display basis.
“It isn’t for the bus drivers to be shouted at by residents who don’t welcome the facility,” Mr Gawn continued.

“[And it’s] not a particularly good welcome for the much-needed tourists bringing their spending to the town.”

East Devon District Council said it was a matter for Seaton Town Council, which has not responded to a BBC request for comment.

“We have also experienced people deliberately parking their cars badly on the approach to our depot at Colyton Station in an attempt to make access difficult,” Mr Gawn added.

Some people have taken to social media in support of the service.
On Facebook, Clare Dare said: “I think by moving next to a bus park there is a pretty good indication that there may possibly be a bus or 2 in there at some point!!!”

Becky Perry added: “Such a shame my little boys loved their adventure on the open top bus this summer!”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-41199363

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

8 Sep 2017

Posted under

Accountability, Austerity cuts, Democracy, Transport (local)

Wow – local MP does something for his community and attacks “jobsworths” at his local council

Relax! It isn’t Swire or Parish – it’s MP Kevin Foster in Torbay! Can you honestly see Parish doing something similar for cut-off Seaton or doing anything that isn’t about the A 303? Or Swire bringing up the fact that in Sidmouth the council has also declined a petition about the future of Port Royal? Get a grip!

“Torbay Council has been blasted during a debate in the House of Commons for a ‘Jobsworth’ attitude to a local bus campaign. As reported by DevonLive, residents in Torquay are dismayed at the axing of the number 65 bus.

They have prepared a petition containing more than 1,200 signatures, but Torbay council has declined to accept it at its next meeting.

Torbay MP Kevin Foster duly took the petition to the House of Commons and presented it there, at which point the Deputy Speaker Lindsay Hoyle told him: “You need to have another word with that local authority.

Mr Foster joined a group of 30 residents battling to get the 65 bus route reinstated after it was axed in April. The route covered some of the hilliest areas of the town including Hele, Babbacombe and Ellacombe.

Campaigner Val Baker said: “Since the bus was axed, many of the most vulnerable and elderly members of the community have been left cut off and isolated. People say they feel cut off from the outside world now and their only alternative is to use a taxi, which they can ill afford.”

The nationwide Campaign for Better Transport is urging Torbay Council to rethink its transport plan and consult with the community. They say the misery of the bus cuts is an all-too-common story all over the country.

In the House of Commons Mr Foster handed in the petition and said: “Some Jobsworths at Torbay Council have decided they wish to reject this petition, so it’s welcome that this House is more responsive to my residents’ views than some officers at their local council.

“The petition declares that the cancellation of the 65 bus will have detrimental impact on local residents and in particular elderly residents. The petition therefore requests that the House of Commons urges Torbay Council to commit to providing a similar service to the previous 65 service for the sake of the local residents as soon as possible.”

http://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/mp-blasts-jobsworth-torbay-council-442106

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East Devon Watch

Posted on

7 Sep 2017

Posted under

Economy, Seaton/ Colyford / Colyton, Tourism, Transport (local)

Seaton to twin with Siberia?

Rumblings in Seaton and Beer, where direct buses to Exeter (X52) via RDE have been cut to two a day – 10 am and midday from Seaton and 11.20 and 13.20 from Exeter and no X52 on Sundays.

The only alternatives for those wanting to go to the hospital is the lengthy journey (30-40 minutes longer) 9A via Sidmouth, which will require a change of bus in Exeter, or an expensive taxi.

Youngsters (are there any in Seaton?) will be unable to take advantage of metropolitan education, jobs and activities unless they get up very, very early and come home by teatime and those with jobs outside Seaton will definitely need their cars.

And should guests checking-in at the new Premier Inn fancy leaving their cars behind for a day out after they have exhausted the offerings in the sleepy town on a rainy day – well, at least they will be back in their hotel in time for very early dinner and they can be tucked up safely in their beds by 9 pm!

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

28 Aug 2017

Posted under

Accountability, EDDC, Greater Exeter, Transport (local)

This month’s EDDC Cabinet meeting

Highlights

Councillors will not be subjected to “Disclosure and Barring Service” (DBS) checks. This is a service to employers to make safer recruitment decisions and prevent unsuitable people from working with vulnerable groups, including children. It replaces the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA). Councillors will receive safeguarding training instead.
page 77

The “Greater Exeter Strategic Plan” progresses so swiftly that Cabinet has had to ask for exemption from tendering procedures to appointment Footprint Ecology to undertake a Habitat Regulations Assessment of the Greater Exeter Strategic Plan.
page 118

Manor Pavilion Car Park will become a “Pay and Display” car park
On page 125 a number of exemptions to charges are offered – but Owl recalls that car parking income MUST only be used to improve traffic issues – so quite how the car park income can be used to aid the theatre is confusing.

Click to access 060917combinedcabinetagenda_opt.pdf

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

26 Aug 2017

Posted under

Accountability, DCC, Ottery St Mary, Transport (local)

Straitgate Quarry – traffic light crossing for cows proposed on B3174

“An application to create a 100-acre quarry on the outskirts of Ottery has once again faced backlash from civic leaders.

Aggregate Industries’ (AI) proposals to extract up to 1.5million tonnes of raised sand and gravel at Straitgate Farm came before Ottery Town Council’s planning committee after the firm submitted further environmental information.

In the additional documents, the developer has suggested a traffic light-controlled cattle crossing on the B3174 to meet the farm’s grazing needs.

The quarry has been earmarked as an approved site, but has not received planning permission.

On Monday, the committee voted again not to support the application.

Councillor Roger Giles said the idea of a cattle crossing was ‘absolutely outrageous’ and ‘atrocious’. He added: “This is a planning application that is very detrimental to Ottery and the surrounding areas and here is an opportunity to express our views once again.

“There are going to be four movements of cattle a day across that road, just below Daisymount, with traffic lights.

“If we weren’t concerned enough about the hundreds of slow-moving vehicles going up and down and across that road, we are now facing the prospect of traffic being stopped for cattle coming across four times a day, 365 days a year.

“I think that is absolutely outrageous and atrocious and I can’t think of anything more damaging and dangerous.”

Cllr Giles reiterated his previous concerns from March, which included traffic, flooding, water supplies, wildlife and landscape issues.

He added: “The town council has very serious concerns about the proposals to have laden lorries exiting the site and turning right across a heavy flow of fast moving traffic and travelling slowly uphill along Exeter Road to Daisymount.

“And we have very serious concerns about the proposals for unladen lorries slowly executing a left turn from the B3174 towards the site with a heavy flow of fast moving traffic coming up behind, speeding downhill from Daisymount.”

Members supported the request to resubmit their previous concerns, as well as adding ‘very strong’ objections to the cattle crossing.

The fate of the application will be decided by Devon County Council.”

http://www.sidmouthherald.co.uk/news/outrageous-plans-to-proposed-cattle-crossing-at-staitgate-farm-ottery-1-5164587

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

18 Aug 2017

Posted under

Accountability, Consultation, Democracy, Scrutiny, Transparency, Transport (local)

(Some) council leaders brand single-option consultation a sham

“The leaders of Adur and Worthing councils have called for a ‘sham’ A27 improvements consultation to be halted and re-run with further options.

Highways England has put forward just one £69million proposal to tweak six key junctions between Worthing and Lancing. But councillor Neil Parkin and councillor Dan Humphreys have joined forces to campaign for a rethink. Mr Parkin, Adur District Council leader, said: “Highways England say they want to consult with us but we say this is a sham.”

“By not allowing the public to weigh up options and see full costings how are we to make any kind of decision? “All I do know is the current scheme on the table is barely worth the disruption and certainly not worth spending £69million on.” Modest improvements to six junctions between Durrington Hill and the Lancing Manor roundabout are proposed which would cut three minutes from journey times but, according to Highways England’s own scoring system, would deliver no ‘significant benefits’.

In its consultation document the agency alludes to more expensive and radical solutions, such as underpasses and flyovers but dismisses them as too expensive without further explanation.

Mr Humphreys, Worthing Borough Council leader, said: “The more I listened to officials explaining the scheme at the launch of the consultation the more angry I became. “Highways England do not seem to be taking us seriously. Our questions were met with an ‘experts know best’ response while there was no explanation about why other options hadn’t been explored,” said.

“The current consultation should be halted and a proper one, involving other options and explanations started afresh. The agency must have those plans and calculations so let’s seem them.” The leaders insisted it is not for the councils to submit plans but for Highways England to give local residents, businesses and politicians real choice and real consultation.

Consultation ends on September 12 with two years of construction expected to start in 2020 if the scheme is approved.

Article originally appeared on Worthing Herald”

https://www.consultationinstitute.org/consultation-news/council-leaders-brand-single-option-consultation-a-sham/

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

18 Aug 2017

Posted under

Accountability, Austerity cuts, Economy, Greater Exeter, Transport (local)

Government ripping us off – again

From The Times (pay wall). It’s going to make commuting by rail to Exeter from Axminster, Honiton, Feniton, Whimple and Cranbrook a very expensive way of getting there – so more cars will be clogging up more roads in “Greater Exeter”.

“Nobody likes being ripped off. And there is something particularly distasteful about being fleeced by your own government.

But that is precisely what is happening. Rail fares are set to rise at a much faster rate than employee earnings, with annual season tickets of over £5,000 an increasingly common sight. And interest charges on student loans in England will rise to 6.1 per cent from the autumn.

From students to commuters, the cost of living in the UK is on the rise. And some of the biggest cost increases are in areas where the government sets the terms.

Both rail fares and student loans are linked, under government policy, to the retail price index measure of inflation, long ago discarded by economists as a flawed measure of price growth. It is widely known that RPI consistently overstates inflation in the UK, and that the alternative measures of inflation, consumer prices index (CPI) and CPIH (which includes owner-occupiers’ housing costs) are a far better reflection of what is actually going on.

Indeed, in the June 2010 budget George Osborne announced that, partly for these reasons, the government would start using CPI for the uprating of benefits and public sector pensions. The same budget mentioned “reviewing how CPI can be used for the indexation of taxes and duties while protecting revenues”, yet there has been near-silence on this issue ever since.”

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

4 Aug 2017

Posted under

Accountability, DCC, EDDC, Independent Councillors, Newton Poppleford, Stuart Hughes, Transport (local)

Comments

1 Comment

Tory councillor agrees with comments by Independent councillor – a first?

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

31 Jul 2017

Posted under

Cranbrook, Developers/ Development, EDDC, Planning System, Transport (local)

Are Cranbrook’s streets too narrow?

The fire service has already said so:
http://www.devonlive.com/service-issue-warning-inconsiderate-cranbrook/story-29053868-detail/story.html

and a highly critical report mentioned the problem of cars parked in streets – one which has not gone away:
https://eastdevonwatch.org/2015/09/14/what-mainstream-media-isnt-telling-you-about-that-dcc-cranbrook-report/

Now the bus company with the near monopoly in Devon, and which sends only single-decker buses through the town, issues a warning:

“Residents on newly built housing estates are being cut off from the bus network because developers are failing to construct wide enough roads, according to public transport bosses.

One of Britain’s biggest operators warned that buses were being forced to avoid many estates amid concerns over narrow roads, sharp bends, overzealous traffic calming and parked cars.

Stagecoach said that high-density developments were being built with roads only 6m wide, when operators needed 6.5m to allow two buses to pass without clipping wing mirrors.

It blamed planning rules that have cut road widths or pushed the layout of sharp bends to keep car speeds down.

The company also said that national guidelines introduced by Labour 17 years ago intended to clear roads of cars by providing less off-street parking had backfired, with many motorists leaving vehicles on the street.

Stagecoach has issued its own guidance to councils, urging them to build roads at least 6.5m wide, with sweeping bends and off-street parking provided.

It also said that “shared space” schemes that seek to declutter streets by stripping out kerbs, road markings and traffic signs should be redesigned to “avoid buses straying into areas intended mainly for pedestrians”.

Nick Small, Stagecoach’s head of strategic development for the south, said examples included the Shilton Park estate in Carterton, Oxfordshire, where the company could not operate a full-size bus, and the Kingsway development, Gloucester, which had areas “impenetrable by buses”.

Daniel Carey-Dawes, a senior infrastructure campaigner at the Campaign to Protect Rural England, said: “Bad design will lock our towns and countryside into toxic congestion and car dependency for decades.”

Martin Tett, housing and transport spokesman for the Local Government Association, said: “We will be looking closely at this blueprint and continuing to work hard to deliver places where our communities can thrive.”

Source: The Times (pay wall)

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

21 Jul 2017

Posted under

Austerity cuts, Beer, DCC, Martin Shaw, Seaton/ Colyford / Colyton, Sustainability, Transport (local)

Seaton and Beer risk being cut off from Exeter by proposed bus service reduction

Press release:

“At Devon County Council yesterday, Seaton & Colyton’s Independent East Devon Alliance councillor, Martin Shaw, asked Councillor Roger Croad, Cabinet Member for Transportation, if the Council would support peak services on the X52 bus service from Seaton and Beer to Exeter, which are threatened with closure by First Wessex.

First Wessex proposes to run only two off-peak buses a day in each direction from September. While better than nothing, these are inadequate for people in Seaton and Beer who want to work or study in Exeter or get to appointments at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital. Relying just on these services, people would barely be able to spend an hour in Exeter before having to get the bus back.

This is the only service direct from Seaton and Beer to the RD&E and this narrow window will not enable people to get to appointments. Using other services, people in Beer who want to get to the hospital will have to change twice in Seaton and Exeter Bus Station and the journey which currently takes an hour will take more than two hours each way, making it arduous and impractical for many people.

Councillor Croad initially replied to suggest that people could use these alternative routes. In a supplementary question, Councillor Shaw suggested that since hospital services are increasingly being centralised in the RD&E, the withdrawal of direct bus services discriminates against people without cars in communities like Seaton and Beer which are on the periphery of Devon. ‘Seaton is further from the RD&E than any other town in Devon and has the oldest population profile of any town in Devon’, he said. ‘We need direct public transport links to the acute hospital in Exeter.’

Councillor Croad then said that if Councillor Shaw would meet him afterwards, he would discuss the issue. When they talked, Councillor Croad agreed to look further at the question. The supplementary question and the reply can be seen from 1:47:50 to 1:49:15 on https://devoncc.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/283676.”

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

11 Jul 2017

Posted under

Economy, Transport (local)

Worries about London-Devon rail monopoly

If London Paddington via Tiverton and London Waterloo via Axminster owned by same company.

“Rail providers have been given five days to address competition concerns after a watchdog warning about higher fare prices.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) warned passengers could face higher fares and worse service following the decision to award the South West Trains (SWT) rail franchise to First Group.

The SWT franchise is currently operated by Stagecoach but will be taken over by First Group in partnership with Hong Kong-based company MTR on August 20.

CMA acting chief executive Andrea Coscelli said: “The CMA believes that without its intervention, First Group may be able to increase fares for passengers between London and Exeter, as it will be the only rail operator running all services on this route.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-england-devon-40499683

and:

“Rail passengers could face higher fares and worse service following the decision to award the South West Trains rail franchise to First Group, the competition watchdog has warned.

Concerns have been raised by the Competition and Markets Authority about the London-Exeter route as First Group already operates Great Western Railway, which runs the only other train service between the cities.

The SWT franchise is currently operated by Stagecoach but will be taken over by First Group in partnership with Hong Kong-based company MTR on August 20.

CMA acting chief executive Andrea Coscelli said: “This is a crucial rail route to the South West, used by around half a million passengers a year. It’s therefore vital that passengers do not suffer as a result of reduced competition.

“The CMA believes that without its intervention, First Group may be able to increase fares for passengers between London and Exeter, as it will be the only rail operator running all services on this route.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-england-devon-40499683

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

28 Jun 2017

Posted under

Rural communities, Transport (local)

Local public transport: Stagecoach in financial trouble – will there be price hikes?

Owl says: Stagecoach Group plc has announced bad results for the past year and their shares are down 7.5% today. East Devon is heavily reliant on the company for rail services to London on its South West Trains franchise and for bus services throughout the district, where the company has a near monopoly on routes.

Will this be yet more price hikes for rural communities and commuters?

“Stagecoach was forced to take a hefty £84.1mln pre-tax charge on the joint venture with Virgin, as well as an additional £44.8mln write down on the value of the network – one that used to be profitable under public ownership.

The FTSE 250 group said it was in talks with the Department for Transport regarding the terms of the deal and hoped that, with some tweaks, the franchise will return to profitability in 2019. …”

http://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/179959/

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

25 May 2017

Posted under

Accountability, Transport (local)

Pothole protest

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4539836/Councillors-holes-road-rubber-ducks.html

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

24 May 2017

Posted under

Health and Social Care (local), NHS (local), Rural communications, Rural communities, Transport (local)

“The state of rural services” report

“Changes to rural transport provision affect access to a range of service facilities and outlets, where these are not available locally and where travel is necessary. Recent reductions to bus services are therefore of direct relevance to various topics covered by this report.

Similarly, rural access to a range of services is altering due to the provision of and take-up of online services. This has considerable scope to address long standing concerns about rural access to services, if geographic distance is no longer such a barrier. However, this is not straightforward. Not all groups are online, some rural areas await decent (broadband) connectivity and one consequence may be less used physical outlets e.g. bank branches.

The demography of rural areas and, in particular, the growing number of older people has implications for the future of services covered in this report. On the one hand it places considerable extra pressures on public services such as GP surgeries and adult social care, especially if funding for them is tight, as it has been for some years and seems likely to continue being. On the other hand older age groups are more likely to be users of locally based commercial services in rural areas, such as convenience stores, thus helping them to survive. Retired people who remain in good health are also likely to make up a good proportion of the volunteers engaged with providing community-run services. …”

https://ruralengland.org/the-state-of-rural-services-2016-report/

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

22 Apr 2017

Posted under

Councillor Marianne Rixon EDA, East Devon Alliance, Environment (local), Stuart Hughes, Transport (local)

Comments

1 Comment

“Nearly 40 million people live in UK areas with illegal air pollution”

Owl says: you don’t hear (current) DCC councillor and its roads supremo Stuart Hughes (Conservative, ex- Monster Raving Loony Party) mentioning this in his election speeches … though you DO hear contender Councillor Marianne Rixson (Independent East Devon Alliance)doing so and drawing attention to its implications for the health of local communities.

“…The extent of the air pollution crisis nationally is exposed in the data which shows 59% of the population are living in towns and cities where nitrogen dioxide (NO2) pollution breaches the lawful level of 40 microgrammes per cubic metre of air. …”

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/apr/22/nearly-40-million-people-live-in-uk-areas-with-illegal-air-pollution

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

20 Apr 2017

Posted under

Accountability, Developers/ Development, Persimmon, Transport (local)

Comments

1 Comment

Persimmon non-payment for 3 years may lead to loss of bus service

Owl says: if a developer has not kept its side of a bargain and ows money or in-kind payments, with a planning application, surely it should not be allowed to submit further planning applications till the debt has been fully discharged (with appropriate interest).

“The future of a vital bus route could be placed in jeopardy. Persimmon Homes South West has built 334 new homes at Mile End on the Ashburton Road on the A383 at the edge of Newton Abbot, and as part of the planning agreement for the scheme, they would help to fund the number 88 bus service that runs between Newton Abbot and Totnes, via Buckfastleigh, and travels on the A383 Ashburton Road,

But, the developers have been accused of not paying those contribution for 2015, 2016 and 2017 – a total of £225,000.

Teignbridge Council have commenced legal proceedings against the developer to ensure all the signed contributions are met.

But there are fears that unless the developers pay up, the bus route could be placed in jeopardy as there could be no funds for it.”

http://www.devonlive.com/south-devon-bus-service-under-threat-as-developers-have-not-paid-contributions-for-it/story-30282913-detail/story.html

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