Nick Raymond the County Engineer dares to come to us to find out what we want.
He has an abysmal track record in some respects. It is important for us to tell him clearly our views.
I have suggested several areas that could be improved in the town in the leaflet that has been widely distributed through half of Ulverston - East Ward.
Here is a copy.
First we need the appearance of the town centre to reflect our pride in our town.
Second we would greatly benefit from the new government scheme - "Shared Space" which would enable people and vehicles to mix freely and safely through the Centre - Market Street and Upper Brook Street.
Here is a recent shared space working in Brighton.In addition to the poor state of our road markings, the most glaring example of his inactivity is regarding our cobbles.
Contractors were allowed to dig up holes in Market Street and not replace the cobbles correctly.
He did not supervise the work. United Utilities through their contractor Balfour Beatty did an appalling job. When we complained to him, no improvements took place even though the contractors were legally liable to repair faulty workmanship.
When I contacted United Utilities through one of their employees they reported that, yes, the work was bad and they would return to repair all the cobbles they were responsible for even though it was beyond the period where they were legally liable.
They stated that they had received no complaints from Nick Raymond about their work despite our complaints to him.
He clearly is not doing his job.
Furthermore we need street furniture : benches, lamps and signs, as suggested by Councillor Colin Williams recently. There is a place for sculpture and hanging baskets in areas such as Lower Brook Street, Potter's Yard and Bolton's Place with its Mural.
Shared Space is a concept that restricts the speed of vehicles so that pedestrians can take full advantage of the whole street. Drivers can access the buildings, but the street is not generally used as a thoroughfare. Vehicle speeds are kept to about 10mph, giving time for people to politely allow them access.
When Nick Raymond comes to Ulverston this next Thursday Evening at 7 pm in Glaxo Club to consult us about our town centre, we need to be very assertive and make sure he listens to us clearly. He has a tendency to want to tell us what we can and cannot have. He is not here to tell but to listen.
2 comments:
Market Street, Ulverston has no cobbles to replace. What you are referring to are stone setts.
People here refer to them as cobbles - so cobbles is the term we use!
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