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Published on: 16/01/2021 10:37 AMReported by: roving-eye
John Pugh’s invitation to the government minister in charge of cycling to come and look at some of the problems created by the quickly created pop up cycle routes has been declined.
Cllr. Pugh who was a former colleague of the minister, (Chris Heaton-Harris) on the Commons Public Account Committee stressed in his invitation that this was a prime example of where we need to look at whether government money is spent well.
"Routes like the Houghton St,QueensRoad and Talbot St were implemented at the government’s behest under emergency regulations with government money to a government timescale that made public consultation impossible.
Unsurprisingly it has created problem for businesses, churches and other community bodies like - the Little Theatre. We are still unclear how their success is going to be measured even though the council has promised a six month review.”
Cllr Pugh criticised also local Conservatives for trying to deflect blame for the confusion.
"Right across the country there are pop up cycle lanes financed and promoted by both the government and the Prime Minister. When I last checked these were both Conservative and the spectacle of local Conservatives blaming other parties for the inevitable unsatisfactory outcomes indicates either hypocrisy to stupidity.”
Should they be incapable or unwilling to grasp the dry bones of the legislation that made pop-up cycle lanes without consultation possible, I can assist their comprehension by photoshopping Boris Johnson into Houghton St."
Dear Chris,
In our time on the Public Accounts Committee the stress was always on value for money. As the minister for cycling you will have presided over the
£250 m -Emergency Active Travel Fund.
There is always a trade off between spending money quickly and spending it well and given the extraordinary truncated timetables for the use and implementation, the use of emergency traffic orders etc, the scheme would be excellent grist for the NAO mill.
My purpose in writing to you is to invite you to Merseyside to see how that money is being spent. Money is relatively scarce in our area and certainly not to be spent unwisely. However, not every scheme developed in haste seems to have clear criteria against which success can be measured and some have created problem both for business and community facilities- churches, theatres etc.
Unanticipated consequences are almost inevitable given the schedule demanded by government but probably more concerning is the absence of defined outcome measures underpinning scheme reviews.
If there are some clear measurables which the department has in mind or a template for reviews , it would be enormously helpful to have sight of them. However, there is no substitute for real time observation and with that in mind can I invite you to look at some of our local schemes and meet proponents and opponents of them.
The town should have had a well thought out and properly engineered, practical network of cycleways in place many years ago. Cycle usage would have steadily increased to a decent level, but as a result that never happened.....The 'rush job' we now see, is a step forward, but with a little more thought, it could have been so much better. Hoghton St is sufficiently wide, to accommodate both parking and cycle-lanes.
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sandGroundZero says:16/01/2021 12:13 PM
Cycle lanes are attention grabbers for the May Council election candidates (assuming the election is not postponed, again).
Why is Whitehall directing expenditure on cycle lanes? Highways are a largely local concern, but in our overly centralized little country resources and ultimate authority are doled-out from the centre. Local Councils have been deprived of their ability to raise finance. Council Tax, though administered locally, is designed by central government, regressive and regulated such that the ire of taxpayers is directed at the Council.
Chris Heaton-Harris
England urgently needs its local Councils' structure to be made far more transparent and accountable to residents. I look forward to Councillor candidates offering their nostrums on that score. [Chance would be a fine thing!]
Show me the actual survey results that are supposed to be made public before any further roll-out? The Govt and the Tax-payer wants to see the number and frequency of useage instead of fraudulent manipulated 'modelling'!
As ever the fringe undemocratic left in this town and Boothill can't practice democracy....
This has nothing to do with Sefton Council, it’s a central government initiative
Did central Government determine where these temporary cycle lanes were going to be placed in each town, or was that decided by local government/councils?
This has nothing to do with Sefton Council, it’s a central government initiative
There are always people who will take a political stance on every issue. Some will blame the Conservative Government and others will blame the Labour led council. It is best to view all matters from the common sense perspective and push ideologies to one side.
Whilst I am not, by nature, a defeatist, I have long given up trying to make common sense observations on cycling matters. The cycling lobby are untouchable and cycling has become elevated to the status of a religion. No doubt, before long it will be considered a "hate crime" to speak adversely about the pastime.
I can remember when passengers had to pay to take a bike onto a train (it wasn't cheap, I think about seven eighths of the full adult fare) and even then it had to be put in the guards van. Now anyone can take a bike on a crowded train, even in the peak hour, and squeeze it past standing passengers to reach their own bike area. No charge.
If Southports new cycling regulations prevent motorists from coming into the town, resulting in reduced footfall, then I am afraid that along with a lot of other things we just have to accept that it is part of today's society and just like the abolition of free speech (& even free thinking), we have to put up with it
A) There are always people who will take a political stance on every issue. Some will blame the Conservative Government and others will blame the Labour led council. It is best to view all matters from the common sense perspective and push ideologies to one side.
B) If Southports new cycling regulations prevent motorists from coming into the town, resulting in reduced footfall, then I am afraid that along with a lot of other things we just have to accept that it is part of today's society and just like the abolition of free speech (& even free thinking), we have to put up with it
A) Completely agree....There are far too many politicians with old-school attitudes to bikes and private cars. I.e. they work to the outdated principle that bikes are a second-rate form of transport, used by people who can't afford a car and probably vote Labour. Whereas car ownership to them, says you have money, are middle-class and probably vote Tory.
Common sense dictates a more pragmatic view. The planet is in meltdown, man-made CO2 has to be drastically cut. Sealevel rise doesn't care one jot about politics. Bikes, perhaps electric ones, are an inexpensive solution to the problem. After all, not everyone - regardless how they vote - can afford an expensive electric car.
B) I don't ever see a time when motorists will be 'prevented from coming to town'. Visitors as we all (hopefully) realise, are an important part of the local economy - and the more the merrier. For that reason, I believe a towns main shopping areas should be engineered to be as shopper-friendly as possible. And unless every shop becomes a drive-thru, shopping will be done as it always has been, by people on foot (or even bike).
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The PNP says:17/01/2021 11:57 AM
Originally Posted by local
Cycling is great exercise but so are many other things and clearly, it's not much use for commuting or shopping for the majority, some places fine, but it doesn't work here let's face it.
When was the last time you visited a bike shop? Because in there, are models for every purpose, inc Commuter Bikes and Shopper Bikes....Even a small outlet like 'Mecycle' Cycle Cafe has examples of these. Go have a look see, you'll be pleasantly surprised.
For a sizeable proportion (30% to 40%) of the population, bikes are ideal for commuting and shopping. You only have to look at our neighbours in NL, to see how it works. The terrain here is identical, being devoid of pesky hills. Only difference is the lack of a comprehensive network of safe, separate, high quality cycle tarmac......Build the right infrastructure and they will come.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, John Pugh
in full campaign mode endeavours to remind
voters that Liberal Democrats want their votes.
…but are all DimDems on the same page?
Dr. Pugh is having to tread a fine line given his party's traditional green stance while at the same time trying to capitalize on perceived discontent (among business proprietors, especially?)
Cllr. Pugh who was a former colleague of the minister, (Chris Heaton-Harris) on the Commons Public Account Committee stressed in his invitation that this was a prime example of where we need to look at whether government money is spent well.
......
Should they be incapable or unwilling to grasp the dry bones of the legislation that made pop-up cycle lanes without consultation possible, I can assist their comprehension by photoshopping Boris Johnson into Houghton St."
Classic childish Lib Dem point scoring, John Pugh invites a minister from Daventry to Southport during a pandemic to help fuel his point scoring and it get declined? Not really be a surprise that it was declined or John Pugh chooses to share his inbox in a fight to stay relevant, it would be much better if the response was actually shared.
Perhaps the minister can’t remember Cllr Pugh as I don’t think his impact on Southport was that great in terms of anything tangible other than slavishly voting through lots of Southport unfriendly policies during the coalition years.
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Tallboy says:17/01/2021 10:38 PM
Your comment is total 'Tosh' sunshine! The instructions issued from Cabinet effectively stated 'here's the money, stop moaning and show us the actual traffic flows NOT modelling'!
So where are are the actual traffic flow survey results?? Why are Sefton and you 'clyclo facists' not making them available to public scrutiny?? As a cyclist I know these cycle lanes are a total waste of tax payers money!! As I've stated, you and your kind can't handle Democracy....
That is the most naive comment I've ever seen on this issue and shows you have absolutely no grasp of the de-carbonisation issues what so ever! Cycling will not make one jot of a 10th of a % of difference on the National Carbln Net Zero target for 2050! ??
The single greatest contributor is conversion of Natural Gas to Hydrogen blend (80/20%) followed by Hydrogen Fuel Cells to replace combustion engines! It is not cycling, not electric vehicles, not heat pumps or district heating schemes, nor 'smart grids'.... You are hiding behind 'smoke and mirrors' to promote your cyclo-facist beliefs!!!
We know from the news and assorted programmes that London is a busy dangerous place for cyclists and there have been a few incidents of terrorism lately including crashing vehicles into people and bollards outside government buildings and a stabbing on a bridge.
Then we have our prime minister wandering about 7 miles from home apparently unprotected and alone on an old bicycle.
That is the most naive comment I've ever seen on this issue and shows you have absolutely no grasp of the de-carbonisation issues what so ever! Cycling will not make one jot of a 10th of a % of difference on the National Carbln Net Zero target for 2050!
Disagree.
CO2 reduction from bikes depends on the uptake of cycling. And that in turn depends on provision of safe infrastructure.....When a significant percentage of UK journeys are made by bike instead of by car, a significant amount of CO2 is saved.
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