DulwichLondoner

I got on the train at Victoria and the display showed "calling at Denmark Hill". I then learnt the train calls only at beautiful Lewisham. Why they couldn't make the announcement from the train is beyond me. This is the 3rd time it's happened to me in the last few months. I was tempted to pull the emergency brake handle! I counted 8 other furious people at Lewisham. I am biting my tongue and not saying what I think but it can be easily guessed. Just goes to show I am right in moving away from Se London because trains have been making my life impossible.

rendelharris Wrote: > A brisk walk? A short bicycle ride? How did our > grandparents manage when almost nobody had a car? > This is the level we've reached, when people can't > see an alternative to having a car for a 2KM > journey. No wonder we're all getting fatter! Not always are these realistic options. Some of those short journeys may be dangerous for a woman alone on a winter night. In other cases the pedestrian route might be even longer than those 2 kms. Not everyone wants to cycle, especially in a rainy winter. And, quite understandably, not everyone wants to add 20-30 minutes each way to an already long commute! For me, those are yet more reasons why I hate places like Weybridge and I'll never move there, but to each their own. Not to mention that, for many people, driving these short distances is the only feasible way to drop off kids at school (catchment areas are not 300 metres everywhere).

Those statistics, like those on the average income or the average wealth of Londoners, are close to meaningless because of the huge variability underlying those numbers. I know quite a few families who live in Surrey or Kent and who have a cheap small second car because the first one is needed by the partner for commuting, and the second by the other partner simply to get to the station. 2kms doesn't seem much but there are plenty of places within the M25 where you need a car to cover a 2 or 3 km distance to the closest train station, without having a public transport alternative. Yes, it sucks having to buy a car just for such a small journey, but what's the alternative? Also, if we're talking about the same report, car ownership and usage is, surprise surprise, much lower in zone 1 / inner London and increases the farther away you go, and also increases when you have children. All I'm saying is there should be a distinction between the very centre of London, which is well connected and in which using a car causes clear and undeniable congestion, and everywhere else. There are dodgy parts of North London with more parking restrictions than in South Kensington - that's ridiculous! Similarly, there are small towns which have made parking impossible, and then the council wonders why small town shops struggle and everyone goes to the out of town mall with free parking! PS the problem with home delivery is perishable items : shops often offload the items which expire soon to home delivery, whereas in a shop you can choose.

rendelharris Wrote: --------------------------------------------- > Apart from four trains an hour to ED station, > right by Sainsbury's, taking two minutes, the 42 > bus every ten minutes, or (with the usual caveat > about the elderly and disabled) it's less than > three quarters of a mile, taking the average > person about fifteen minutes to walk or two > minutes on a bike! Not the best argument for "I > have to use my car" I think! Have you tried to do it with one, or, God forbid, two toddlers? Whne my first child was born I lost about a stone because I'd walk with the buggy everywhere, all the way to Brixton or Forest Hill or even Clapham a few times. But doing it with a week's supply of groceries is different. If I remember correctly, the North Dulwich station is not accessible. And trains can be every 20 minutes, or, at weekends, sometimes every 30 or never when there are works. Ever tried waiting 20 to 30 minutes with two toddlers that need to be constantly entertained and distracted? I wouldn't wish it to my worst enemy. The 42 and the 37 are some of the worst bus services in the area, after the P buses - I know from direct experience. Look, I'm not saying that every parent should get a car. What I'm saying is that the difference is not immaterial. And I don't feel an enemy of the planet for buying one. Also, while I don't think it would be wise to buy a car only to go to Sainsbury, having it opens a world of opportunities and makes life easier in a number of ways (again, especially if you have kids). I know many couples in the area who bought a car only after reproducing. I don't know anyone with kids who has sold the car because they weren't using it (but I know some childless people who sold it because they weren't using it enough). PS rendel, what's with you and flocker? You and I have had our disagreements but I think we have always managed to keep it civilised.

It depends on where you live. If you live by the Dulwich library you have plenty of frequent buses to get to the big Sainsbury on Dog Kennel Hill. If you live, say, near the North Dulwich Station, your public transport options are much more limited.

A game changer is if you have kids Public transport in SE London sucks. Many stations are not accessible. If, on an infrequent bus route like the 37,all the buggy spaces are occupied, it may take you almost an hour to get from Dulwich to Brixton (been there, done that). If you have to visit people in different areas (eg coffee in Telegraph Hill then late lunch in Putney) and have kids then public transport becomes a nightmare. Oh, and of course you cannot carry your own car seat in a Uber. I mean, you could, but what do you do with it once you reach your destination? I find many anti car talibanes are young professionals with no children who live near a tube station and don't realise that everyone's circumstances are different.

Someone please remind me again why our supposedly privatised rail services are better than the non-privatised ones in continental Europe?

bels123 Wrote: > > https://www.southwark.gov.uk/assets/attach/2111/Pa > rking_zones_-_before_and_after_photos.pdf > > These before & after photos from nearby CPZs show > otherwise - Southwark typically expect a 40% > reduction in parked cars. > > As well as a few other benefits below - cleaner > air, less congestion and encouraging sustainable > travel are my personal favourites. More free > spaces would also result in less of the daily horn > beeping and aggression when cars can't squeeze > past each other at what is about to become the > entrance to the new secondary school. > > - more parking spaces for local residents and > businesses (by preventing commuter and long stay > parking) > prioritised parking for different types of > motorists (eg. residents, disabled visitors, > delivery companies, motorcycles, businesses) > - less congestion > - more convenient parking options for residents' > visitors or trades persons > - improved journey times for buses > - greater reliability with your delivery slots > - improved road safety (by designating where it's > safe to park and where it's not) > - cleaner air (by deterring non essential car > journeys) > - reduced noise levels > - new developments (by reducing the impact on > existing communities) > - new businesses and assistance to existing > businesses (by making available parking permits) > - sustainable travel (by encouraging motorists to > walk or cycle) A couple of photos don't prove anything. When were the photos taken? How often are the roads like that? Etc. Maybe statistics should be taught since kindergarten because it seems no one ever realises that single cases are completely, utterly and totally irrelevant - you need to understand if/how/to what extent the case you have witnessed is representative before inferring any conclusion! This level of ignorance is the perfect breeding gound for fake news. As many have pointed out, commuters' long stays can easily be prevented by setting up a CPZ for only a couple mof hours a day. This keeps long-stay commuters away, while still making it possible to visit a local shop without paying through your nose for parking. Pro-CPZ talibans tend to forget that there is a difference between areas like Oxford street and the rest of the M25! Within zone 1 there are lots of good public transport options; outside of zone 1, it depends. For many families with children public transport is a nightmare: many tube and train stations are not accessible, lifting prams onto a train may not be banal, buses may have the space for prams already occupied (twice it took me almost an hour to go from Goose Green to Brixton because of that; I now drive), and booking an Uber would require you to bring your own car seat to then conveniently carry around.

Today's 8.42 from Denmark Hill to Victoria was cancelled. So the options were 8.10, 8.20, 8.50. A 30-minute gap between services to Victoria is worse than in many, many places outside the M25 (eg Reading to Paddington is way more frequent). Oh, the joys of SE London!

It's not fake news. Councils are not for profit companies that distribute dividends. But reinvesting the proceeds of a CPZ into other services means the council has more money without raising other taxes. Quite self-evident, really...

Does anyone know how much spare capacity, if any, the lines from Denmark Hill and Peckham to Victoria and Farringdon have? Have the train companies just decided to neglect this part of London or, more banally, the blanket is too short in the sense that there isn't enough capacity, so more trains for us would mean a worse service for someone else? It's a genuine question, I really have no idea. But it would be interesting to understand. It would help frame a more constructive discussion to understand at least what would be possible and what wouldn't.

robbin Wrote: > > Out of interest - Zoopla is telling me our house > has risen in value by 8.1% since your prediction > of a 10% fall 2 years ago. That doesn't mean anything. I have seen quite a few properties on sale at prices lower than Zoopla's "valuation". These automated valuations can give a broad indication of the trend in an area, but the margin of error for specific properties is HUUUGE. Also, the value of an item is what people are willing to pay for it. You may think that your property or used car is worth a lot, but what you think is irrelevant - it all depends on what buyers are willing to pay!!

How are the leader of the council and the cabinet chosen?

Do all councillors appoint the Mayor of Southwark and the Chief Executive? Must the Mayor be an elected councillor? Who calls the shots? Is the Mayor a mostly ceremonial role whereas the Chief Executive has real power?

Understood - thanks!

I have always followed national politics very closely but I admit, shame on me, that I have never followed local politics as closely. Can you please remind me how the electoral system for local elections works? We get to choose 3 councilors and then the 3 with the most votes get elected? Can, in theory at least, one vote for councillors belonging to different parties or must they all belong to the same party? I had a look at https://www.southwark.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/councillors-and-mps and https://www.yourvotematters.co.uk/how-am-i-represented/local-council but couldn't understand much about the details.

Thanks!

@Sally Eva, There doesn't seem to be a phone number for the parking people at the council, or, if there is, I haven't managed to find it. I did email the council before posting here but no joy. I am aware that anything that is posted online without a source must be taken with a truckload of salt, but I figured I'd give it a shot. @Rendel, yes, moving - well trying to, and not for a few more months. I'm going to miss the area and especially the parks, but commuting + sky-high house prices (despite London's generalised slump over the last year or so) are forcing me to leave. I'm not going to do the classical full-of-**** thing whereby you never admit to being priced out of an area, you are simply leaving because elsewhere is 'better'! Yes, no more cycling debates! :) We have different opinions but at least we managed to keep the discussions civilised, which is quite rare in these days of online abuse and harassment! In the spot I'm saying there are no indications of waiting times; you can park freely on one side, and there are double yellow lines on the other. I'm going to need a removal company with a biggish truck, not one of those vans you can drive on a car licence.

I need to move and arrange for a removal truck. I live in a road with no parking restrictions on one side of the road, and double yellow lines on the other. Most councils allow a temporary suspension of a parking bay, but AFAIK not in zones without controlled parking, so this is not an option. Southwark also lets you apply for a 'waiting restriction dispensation': https://www.southwark.gov.uk/parking/guide-to-parking/suspension-of-parking-bays Would this allow me to keep a removal truck there for loading and unloading? I must confess I have never fully understood the rules on loading and unloading on double yellow lines: some say it's 20 minutes, some say it's 40, some say it depends on the council?? Anyway, the loading will clearly take more than 40 minutes. Does any one know? Has any one gone through the same? Or is my only option to effectively butter up and pay the fine that the blood-thirsty traffic warden, riding his scooter on L plates because he doesn't have an A licence and with a flip-up helmet most likely not certified to be used in the flip-up position, will surely give me with gusto?

I wasn't asking for any confidential information. I am just curious how one proves citizenship without a passport. Does any one know?

I'm assuming you all had a passport? What would have happened if you were British but didn't have a passport to prove it?

Cewe. I have tried loads and they're the best IMHO. They are used by Jessops and others, but you can also order from Cewe's website directly.

Yes, Brexit is a great chance to pollute more. Let's take back control of our pollution, old chap! Plus I'm sure it will be easy to convince manufacturers that our islands are so significant they warrant the development of new models that meet our standards only. I mean, it's not like there is any cost saving in producing a model that meets the toughest requirements, rather than one for the tougher countries and one for the less-tough ones...

But the point is that we are de facto mandated to hold passports, otherwise proving citizenship becomes practically almost impossible. You may have not noticed if you got your job many years ago, but try getting a job now without a passport. Again, how do you prove citizenship?

But doesn't the V5 show whether a bike is euro 3 or not?