A new drain pipe has been laid under the kerb in Abbey Road leaving a road infill
about 14" (35 centimetres) wide. The contractor rightly judged that the road was too
narrow with the small strip temporarily unavailable and so the traffic lights
had to remain until this afternoon when the underlying concrete had set. What better
illustration does one need that the road is too narrow when the loss of a foot of width
renders it impassable? No wonder it feels so dangerous to stand on one of those refuges
and have fast moving traffic passing the end of your nose
and that motorists clip the kerb
or even hit and injure pedestrians.
Maybe it is time to remind ourselves who is responsible for this disgrace. It was Andrew
Bashford who headed the team responsible for the design and withheld information about its
likely consequences when consulting
a small minority of affected residents. It was
Conservative councillor Peter Craske who failed to spot the flaws in the design and
authorised the go-ahead, and it was Conservative councillor John Davey who said
he saw no justification for it but decided
to stand idly by. Standing idly by is what he does it seems, because he knew full well
that motorists were being given parking tickets in the
most dubious of circumstances
but once again thought his loyalties lay with fellow councillors and council employees
rather than his electorate. To my mind that is a form of corruption. Remember how Craske
and Davey have let us all down when the next elections are due in six months time.