Bic Basher

What files are you trying to upload?

We'll never know the truth because the counters don't add those stuck in traffic such as those outside my flat every day.

Virgin is oversubscribed in ED, so it's no surprise they can't handle the amount of customers they have. I'd rather go for another ISP that uses the Openreach network that is slower, but doesn't go down every 5 mins.

The mother of Ella has said she's against LTNs because they drive traffic onto main roads such as the South Circular which was the cause of her daughter's death. Dulwich Common (and Lordship Lane at the junction of it) have seen increased traffic since the Dulwich Village LTN was introduced as cars which used to filter down Court Lane now get stuck in queues reaching to/from the Village.

Indeed, Croydon went for setting up their own building business to build homes which made them go into the red. It's still a disaster in Croydon where Labour despite bankrupting the council got back in, but the newly elected Mayor is a Tory, so nothing is happening.

I'm still waiting! I suspect the postie who does my round is on holiday, so there's no cover for it as there's been no post since Tuesday.

School holidays are usually a delight for those of us who live on main roads, but at my end of LL we've had to put up with roadworks by Hornimans AGAIN which caused jams back to near the library and even today and yesterday cars piling up to turn right into Dulwich Common which used to be much easier when Court Lane/Calton Avenue were open.

If you think getting on a bus is slow enough with 20mph speed limits and the ED/Village LTNs, the bus lane on Waterloo Road outside Waterloo Station has been reduced to extend the pavement while the bus lane on Waterloo Bridge has been replaced with a cycle lane, leaving the 176 stuck in traffic northbound with other traffic to allow bikes free reign across the bridge. The cycle lane previously which was shared with buses was perfectly adequate, but has led to the 176 having gaps in service.

For the first time this year, Private Eye has been delayed.

Penge has similar issues where a housing developer wants to knock down the Blenheim Shopping Centre and the multi-storey car park with flats and a tower block on the site with limited retail space with 15 car park spaces for residents.

Note that they went for the Local format here instead of the standard Poundland store where it's more likely ED's well heeled customer base won't stick their nose up at discounted sandwiches and milk rather than buying some of the other products they sell in Peckham and Camberwell.

The Abellio industrial action is now over after an agreement between the company and the trade union was agreed today.

Here's the segment from Politics London on YouTube.

Locally I've spotted changes where there's no parking in the park next to Sainsbury's and around Dulwich Hamlet FC, but you can park in Sainsbury's car park still. In Peckham, I parked outside the Peckhamplex and was told it's now a "designated parking area" and there are designated parking areas on LL by the shops. You can still park on the side roads such as Ashbourne Grove and Chesterfield Grove though.

Welcome to capitalism.

I discovered a site called London Vehicle Finder which pulls all the iBus information which tells you how many buses on each route are currently out in each direction. You have to register, but then you can seach by bus route. https://lvf.io/ Currently at the time of posting, there are two buses out on the P13 and three on the 63.

Thames Water were observing the leak this afternoon on LL/Heber Road. Two vans were parked on Heber.

I've had normal post for the last fortnight with magazines/food orders arriving on time.

The P13 had four out of eight buses out during the day which meant half of the drivers allocated to the route were out for part of the day. The 63 had 8 buses out. Incidentally, Abellio will replace Go-Ahead London on the 363 from November 30th, so if this strike action continues for that long, Forest Hill Road will either have a very reduced service or nothing at all with the 63 already being run by them.

It's a shame Iceland didn't return to ED using the Foxton's site instead. However Poundland Local will tap into the M&S and Co-op lunch market as they sell sandwiches in most Poundland's these days at a cheaper price than those two stores, while serving the low income population of ED of which despite the area being more affluent still has people in low paid jobs or on Universal Credit.

There's a lot of tarmac loose on the road and when I cycled past there on Sunday afternoon, there was also ice building up due to the cold.

It doesn't help that Google Maps and Waze send drivers along Underhill/Overhill/Belvoir/Wood Vale during the evening rush. I was in a cab on Thursday going to Lower Sydenham and the driver was sent along all of those roads at 5pm to avoid The Grove junction. Pre-LTN, the driving map apps would also send cabs down Melbourne Grove to avoid Goose Green and the main shopping area on LL.

I've cycled down Underhill and CPR and don't go thinking about how many passengers are in each vehicle. As I've started cycling again since last summer, my confidence has grown enough for me to use most main roads including LL, Peckham Rye, Denmark Hill, Camberwell Road, Peckham Road etc, although I still don't have the confidence to cycle towards the Grove from Sydenham Hill to Dulwich Common because of the contraflow to the Common and the built up traffic waiting at the lights to LL. However it's basic common sense when cycling to share the road with other vehicles either on main roads or side roads. I still have to share the road with cars on Melbourne Grove for example which is inside the ED LTN, so while it's quieter, it certainly is far from the car-free utopia those think it is.

Barclays are closing two more branches in Southwark. Walworth Road - 13th April. Tower Bridge Road - 19th April. This will leave the borough with just two branches, London Bridge and Peckham.

The Forest Hill Thames Water works by the petrol station were completed today.