Huguenot

It's virtually impossible to exit Spurling Road at peak periods on the GG roundabout, as southbound traffic from East Dulwich Road and Dolg Kennel Hill exceeds Lordship Lane's capacity to receive them. QED the roundabout doesn't work well at peak periods. It is quite simply impossible to make sweeping judgments about the effectiveness of roundabouts. Roundabouts are poor at handling large traffic volumes, and this has been proven so through coutless studies to the point that it's no longer a debate at town planning levels. They are also poor at medium traffic levels if there is a large number of vehicles making right turns. The roundabout 'locks'. Town planners have two tools for junction planning called ARCADY and RODEL. These effectively make the decision for them. It's only in marginal situations where other issues may be taken into account. Roundabouts are also more dangerous for cyclists (although they're safer for motorists).

Crikey. I'm now shocked to discover that they claim the plans were agreed through Ofwat - our supposed democratic representatives. Even if I believed them, which I won't, everyone knows that they're all in on the conspiracy anyway. Apparently Ofwat claim that there was not one single complaint from the previous 30 years of tunnelling across London. Yeah, right, do you know how many people have gone missing in London every year since then? Fugging loads, and most of them with brick dust in their hair. Messy business. Can we arrange a baying mob to target the children of employees, and put dog poo on their car doorhandles?

LOL! I might have guessed that rabble rouser AFN would raise her/his head! There are certainly overtones of racism in TW's decision, and more than a hint of class war. It wouldn't surprise me to discover that TW re-routed the ring main extension to specifically target the citizens of Nunhead, and they will probably deliberately do a shabby job for the stretches of tunnel underneath that maligned district. ;-) Franky it also wouldn't surprise me to discover that they were actually stealing Nunhead's water, generated as it is from the hard labour of their benighted citizens, in order to give it to rich white people and their overeducated children. You will find all evidence of their chicanery here. They also have the barely disguised gall to suggest that in delivering water to us and supporting distribution to a city of 14 million they're trying to do an important job. Cheek. My advice is to sue the feckers for everything. At least that way we'll stop the bastards from supplying our water and taking away our sh*t ;-) As an aside, there is a suggestion that they've already built 80 kms of this parasitic tunnel since 1975! At one house every 10 metres that must be around 8,000 households who've been bought off or tortured to silence them about the horrifc damage these foreigners have created. Or maybe with a tunnel width of 3.5 metres, 60 metres underground, teams of motivated people doing the best job they can and 30 years of experience to learn from they don't do an awful lot of damage!

Welcome to the fourm Engels! Or may we call you Friedrich? Bah, Engles - my mistake :( I highly recommend a search on M&S in ED on the forum - there is plenty of evidence that 70% of first time posters are drawn to the forum on the strength of an M&S rumour! This one has the ring of truth about it though - wherein do you source your cunning insights? ;-)

Ah, I see where you're coming from. I like roundabouts too, but there is plenty of evidence that they cannot work in high traffic areas - of which that junction is one. It's counter intuitive, because we like to imagine best case scenarios (like 9pm). We feel that the freedom of roundabouts will deliver freedom of movement. Instead drivers with conflicting destinations are simply inconsiderate in practice, and tend to block other drivers rather than give way. We can't wish away other drivers obnoxious behaviour! There are mathematical proofs of the traffic threshold of effective roundabout action - and that junction would comfortably exceed it during the working day. If you think the GG roundabout works, then I can't believe you've been there during the working day! By seeking freedom we simply imprison ourselves. Nevertheless, there are associated studies that show that increasing the risk to drivers in busy areas actually increases safety.

I never really knew where Nunhead precisly covered. Apparently these are the wards... http://farm1.static.flickr.com/71/152994321_7a3220d2d2.jpg?v=0 '17' is titled Nunhead. I was surprised it went so far north, and seems to encompass quite a lot of areas that I thought of as Peckham. Given that Nunhead has it's own rights and representation, I'd see no reason for feeling it to be a 'burb of Peckham. Stand up for your rights I say. I reckon Peckham's getting a bit uppity if it wants to consider itself a 'district'.

I don't know why the bus companies don't invest in GPS tracker websites. Surely the convenience benefit will outweight the terrorist threat?

Hmmm, it would probably be the only post on there! My experience with these deliveries were that they weren't the problem alone - people take the piss by leaving the vans parked up outside shops for hours on end. I get frustrated by traders hiding behind 'business necessity' when all it's really about is convenience and laziness. The roads seem pretty empty at 7am - Peckham's a late rising village. Perhaps restricting deliveries to 6am to 8.30am only? (Rye Lane isn't a commuter route).

;-) I love cats. I share your anxieties, I'm just having a bit of fun. BTW - I'm in Singapore - it's the middle of the working day and I'm working from home. Does strange things to a feller when he's isolated from the rest of humanity!

Sorry PR, I'm confused. You want there to be no traffic lights at the Peckham Rye East Dulwich Road junction? What do you think will happen to the traffic?

Nah. Sainsbury shopping is Sainsbury shopping. There's a vast difference between the type of goods you get there and the stuff on LL. The two venues aren't interchangeable. Sainsbury has already won that battle. When I did household shopping at Somerfield I bought limited quantities frequently because it was walking distance. When I wanted to buy 8 bags full I always went to Sainsbury because of the broader options. However, I can't buy deli stuff, prezzies, picture frames, cards, or quality books, or have a pint at Sainsbury for example. In that sense LL has already won - it's changed with the times. Sainsbury killed the old LL in the early 90s, but our fine local traders have fought back by altering their proposition and portfolio. It would be outdated to apply eighties arguments about superstores to ED's modern high street.

Incidentally, the little pipe did cause my house to subside - it leaked and ruined the footings. You can still see the impact by looking at the party wall of the 'white' house on Crawthew Grove. Cost 90 grand to fix it, the walls and floors were all pissed.

Okay Tom, but what exactly are you proposing should your campaign be successful? Do you want the pipe not to be built? Do you want the pipe to be built under someone else's house? Do you have an alternative solution to the problem the pipe is there to resolve? Do you want some money off TW to get you off their case? Do you want an opportunity for recourse if a problem is created? There seems to be a mess of conflicting motivations and arguments here, can you clear it up for us? As for debate, don't be silly. Minority shareholders can't hold companies to ransom. You've been watching too much Wall Street. You can still campaign to institutional investors the usual ways. Besides, the tunnel will require planning permission and will be subject to enquiry. Campaign sensibly and democratically through that process, not through mob warfare.

Ah, sorry Horsebox, see Wagtap's infuriation at being expected to abide by motoring laws here. The old dear's trying to duck the law through technicalities.

One need only review the Scientology debacle to know that such aggressive responses from these divine mystical pedlars broke no benefits. MW would do well to discuss this with their PR department. I take the flat-earth jibe to suggest that somehow we are mired in a medieval backwater, whilst MW and chums have advanced to a hypothetical 'next step' for humanity. Perhaps a kind of elevated state that has moved further along the evolutionary road? One that clearly takes its strength from empirical evidence. It neatly puts in our place by pointing out that for us to criticise her on her lofty perch is akin to a child chastising Kant's 'Critique on Reason' for spelling mistakes. Her nose is raised, her disdain apparent. How miserable we must seem, floundering in our primoridal soup. Conversely, how impressive and awesome do the new age tribe appear in their citadel? They're like Philosopher Kings in all their gold and finery. I would be honoured to polish their stools.

What a delightful Huguenot pun! :)

Erm... you didn't. ;-)

Ban all parking on LL from the Mag to the EDT. Widen the pavement and install flower beds, benches and bins. Put rubber speed ramps in every 25 yards that don't extend into the cycling area at kerbside. Put raised pedestrian crossings every 50 yards. Pedestrianise North Cross Road Install a double-decker car park at Sainsbury's with ticketed parking, and impose residents parking restrictions on roads surrounding LL. Put raised pedestrian crossings at the junctions of Melbourne Grove, Derwent Grove, Elsie Road and Tintagel Crescent to ease pedestrian movement from the car park to LL. Raise the pedestrian crossing at GG roundabout. Ban industrial storage of vehicles surrounding LL. This includes estate agent cars, tyre workshops and taxi firms. Create a taxi rank with four car capacity in front of the leisure centre and those ugly council buildings nearby. Make all improvements in the Victorian stylee in keeping with the old fence around Goose Green. Don't do half of it, do all of it. Contrary to traders myopic views, this will drive foot-traffic in ED through the roof and create substantial business growth.

I had to get TW agreement for an extension over a water pipe at the bottom of Crawthew Grove. It took a week, they were friendly and helpful. I supported their view that it's good to get professional advice before building on top of other structures. I also supported their view that the water network was a rather important part of the city's infrastructure, and that 'meausure twice, cut once' doesn't hurt anyone. As you can imagine, it had f*ck all impact on the value of my property. Having water supplies shut down twice a year because of system failures did have had a f*cking impact on the value. I'm rather impressed Tom that you managed to argue that foreign shareholders are a good reason to campaign against the project. All those Johnny foreigners trying to quite literally undermine the capital are clearly up to no good. Napoleon'll be here any minute. Pitchforks and torches all. British shareholders have never shat on anyone. As for trying to stop the project through a blizzard of administrative tripwires, that's just bloodyminded. Ridiculous. There is a sensible suggestion to get independent surveys done to ensure TW are liable for damage. There's also a reasonable suggestion that we ensure that both sides of the scientifc debate are explored. The rest is just crap.

Ah wagtap, the voice of reason. I notice that you also recognise that other rules of the road are not for you when driving. How fortunate we are that you don't leave pedestrians and cyclists with crushed skulls and snapped backs as you skip gleefully through no entry signs. Indeed, if you run scared from the motorists, it is fine advice to oppress the pedestrians, for they are weak and you are strong. Not as strong as the motorists, in front of whom you tremble with cowardly ways, but stronger than mothers with toddlers. How wise you are to ignore traffic signals, because it is only your health at stake. Not the motorists who swerve into each other trying to dodge your idiotic maneuver. Not the pedestrians who bite the dust when frantic motorists mount the pavement trying to avoid your flashing pedals. How flexible your mindset is, that when you're out of a car then drivers are idiots, but when you're in a car you are the finest cavalier in christendom. I tug my forelock to you, stood on your jelly pedestal in your dressing-up box finery.

If she had character she'd stop eating. She's clearly a freak. Talk about rose-tinted spectacles. I mean, how the f*ck does she get over fences? She must be driven by a paranormal compulsion. She's a bloody alien. Does she morph when she steps away from you, like Britney Spears? Is this her when your back is turned....? Who's pimping her out? If your neighbours don't recognise that feeding this ravening maw is unreasonable from the outset, I doubt logic is going to persuade them. They must be mentally disturbed themselves. My advice is to follow her around with a pick-axe handle and swat anyone who so much as looks at her. If you can't bring yourself to kill her, starve the beast. I blame the kerb crawlers. Can of Whiskas in hand, indulging their twisted pecadilloes blissfully unaware of the Frankenstein they're cultivating. All will be fine until the moment of climax, when she tears their throat out, tosses them lifeless to the pavement, and gorges on their corpse in an orgy of slashing jaws.

Does anyone else think that HonaloochieB is demonstrating disturbing similarities to Batdog? As for Moos, well I had to buy one of those toothbrushes with a tongue scrubber. The wife assures me that Eskimos have nothing to do with peas, and nor do any other Canadians if they can help it. I'm under the impression that there are no nice men at all. The relationship and geographical qualifiers are simply redundant. There's either attractive cads who you'll spend your life trying to subdue and emasculate (and then despise if you achieve this), or there's homely companions that you'll spend your life trying not to cheat on (and then despise if you achieve this). As a result, you'll only be happy if you fail to meet any of your goals. Us men like you to be happy, QED nice men don't exist. If you're seeking stable economic co-dependency, it will almost certainly be through a friend, and your sexual satisfaction will probably come from the fact that you're 'doing it' with someone with shared ambition in life. This knowledge will undoubtedly drive you to new heights of dizziness. So stop being picky - shag around until you're bored with it, and then marry someone at work.

As a teenager I was driven to open hearts such as your own *Bob*... Twixt 12 and 17, too old for my mother's bosom and too young for a mututally exclusive relationship, it was only the gentle hands of a plam reader that offered me the intimacy and a sense of shared travails that kept me from the abyss. Perhaps MW74, through the fog of your frustrations, this is the solace that you seek? I have little doubt that within *Bob*'s aura, gently caressed by the cradle of his cool hands and entranced by his dark soulful eyes, your life will find meaning.

Good on you Chav! :-) Mrs F, I love cyclists!

Kford, what utter b*llocks. Utter utter b*llocks. The US is too far away is it? They have different types of cars? Their weird accent means their children bounce off bonnets differently? What about Birmingham, is that too far away? Richmond? Peckham? I'm staggered that grown-ups make up such ridiculous excuses to carry on killing kids. How embarassing. Regardless of that frankly unimaginative challenge, I'll help you gain some clarity by referring to the 50 odd studies referenced at the bottom of that article, many of which are from the UK. I still love you though. :)