Jump to content

Recommended Posts

James Barber wrote (today at 11.10am):-


Hi P68,

How can a build out that does not protrude any further than parked cars "strangle" lordship Lane? [i actually wrote ...another attempt to strangle (sorry, calm) the free flow of traffic in LL - but let it pass]


But he also wrote, today at 09.21am :-They will hopefully calm traffic but primarily ...


Either the build out does have an effect on traffic or it doesn't. Up to you to make your case, but at least make it consistently.

Today I drove past the 'works', (I use that word completely wrongly) - a cursory glance suggests (I do hope I am wrong) that the Chinese granite slabs do not have beveled edges on the road side - if that is so they will, until they wear, very readily cut into tyres which scrape against them - for instance when trying to park close into the pavement. We had this problem when the pavements in Gallery Road were redone - the AA man who then helped us said that this type of problem was very common with new slabs. So do be very careful.



Why so long? They started weeks ago (?late June/ early July) on what is surely not a very complicated job but is located on the busiest road in ED. This delay is presumably because Conways start one job and then move on to other jobs, leaving other jobs in limbo. In other words, just like the worst cowboy builders.


James, I think that you said somewhere something along the lines of Southwark's deal with Conways being one of the cheapest in London. As I have already commented, if you pay peanuts you get monkeys.

Hi James.

Thank you for your reply Re traffic calming. I don't have an issue with trying to improve the look of the entrance to the market, but the traffic calming project to narrow the road's was put forward and agreed on a long time ago, since then we have seen the introduction of the 20 miles an hour speed limit across the borough, thus calming traffic every where yet to day at Peckham Rye in front of the old toilet's more road narrowing, why are we still wasting good money on some thing that is now redundant.

Bob S

Hi kford,

We can with signed agreement from land owners - this is done if they agree to allow right of way. The area around Moxon's we've been trying to do this for some time. But if a single landowner doesn't wish to do it then very hardtop do without creating more ponding which is a major reasons for trying to do this.


Hi bob,

Because many people are not driving at 20mph. further measures are required.


Hi ZT,

Because they're allowed by Southwark Council to take so long. Not having a majority of councllors my lot can only do so much trying to get things completed in reasonable time scales.

Clark Barber wrote


Hi Bob

Because many people are not driving at 20mph. further measures are required.


What others measures are hiding in the wings that we don't know of.


Perhaps it would be better to accept that most people do not drive at 20 mph because it is not sensible


Ill thought out labour manifesto dogma


All roads 20 mph madness.



So in the days when your "lot" ruled, James, were things really so much better? Please give us chapter and verse.


In any case, haven't Conways entered into a contract(s) under which they are penalised if they haven't completed works within a specific time? And what has changed since your "lot" were in power?

Hi Richard tudor,

Southwark Council as part of the 20mph rollout allocated ?700k for further physical measures based on traffic count/speed to take place. This amount is meant to cover the whole borough. Being in opposition I don't yet know what or when further measures are proposed. I hope some of this is used on Barry Road, and other locations around East Dulwich with crashes. But other parts of the borough have much higher crash numbers and should be addressed first.


But of the tiny devolved budgets we have I'd like to see if we can look at one or two crash locations to make them safer.


Hi blah blah,

You are unusual. The Police report that most people think others are driving faster than they actually are.

Traffic counts have previously before 2mph speed limits shown excessive speeding on Lordship lane around Upland Road junction, Barry Road.

Cllr Barber Said


Hi blah blah,

You are unusual. The Police report that most people think others are driving faster than they actually are.

Traffic counts have previously before 2mph speed limits shown excessive speeding on Lordship lane around Upland Road junction, Barry Road.



Why are all roads being targeted instead of the above?


If people think most people are driving faster than they actually are but in fact are going a lot slower there cannot be a problem.

James,

I'm not to certain i understand this the council bring in a road narrowing project let's call this plan A to bring about road calming because of excessive speeding in some location's, this fail's to work, so they need a plan B because plan A is not working, they implement plan B a blanket speed limit of 20 mph across the borough to rectify the situation, this fail's to stop the excessive speeding, so we revert back to plan A the road narrowing which failed in the first place. Do the road planing dept have any clue what they are trying to achieve or how to go about it or even the misery and hardship they are putting local people at. ( This is pop at the council whoever they be not you)

Bob s

James Barber Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Hi kford,

> We can with signed agreement from land owners -

> this is done if they agree to allow right of way.


If they do grant a right the land becomes "highway" and Southwark Council can charge a very expensive street furniture license for use of their own land.


An A-board license alone costs ?380 per year.


Why does Mr Barber support this?


John K

Getting back to the main issue which is when will Conways return and finish the bloody works ?????????? this is turning into a procrastinated bloated load od hog wash.


I care not for stage two "the flower baskets" bla bla bla just finish the works and return the road traffic and bus stops to normal.

To be fair to Conway (god this sticks in the craw) it is not unusual (or indeed bad practice) for customers and suppliers to work as 'partners' - particularly where there is a service or call-off contract situation. However the obvious lack of either timeliness penalty clauses or (it often appears) quality assurance penalty clauses shows the initial procurement and contracting staff in Southwark to be well below par when it comes to setting or policing effective contracts - had they been in a commercial firm they would have been fired.


It is also unfortunate that building and construction services have had a long history of corruption - particularly linked to local authority supply - I am not suggesting that this is the case here, but just because of the history very effective policing of contracts and perhaps some show of 'arms-length' relationships might have been a better call to reassure the paymasters (that's us, eventually, as local and national tax payers, in case you've forgotten).


However, Conway is presumably not the driver of the mad Southwark alone Chinese granite policy which has done much to add to the time failures here (both in terms of delivery and of ease of fitting) so I am sure the blame can be spread quite wide (not that, of course, any blame or censure will actually be applied anywhere).

James, you haven't replied to my post below:


"


So in the days when your "lot" ruled, James, were things really so much better? Please give us chapter and verse.


In any case, haven't Conways entered into a contract(s) under which they are penalised if they haven't completed works within a specific time? And what has changed since your "lot" were in power?"


If you don't reply to this, I will assume that this is because you can't make a satisfactory response and that Southwark's relationship with Conways is no different from when your "lot" were in power. Please in future try to help us to get a better service from Southwark and Conways rather than using these threads to take political swipes at Southwark Labour.

To be honest, this latest design doesn't bear much resemblance to the original Living Streets recommendations... it's more of a bog-standard highway junction build-out with a raised crossing.


As it develops, it's looking like there won't be much space for anything other than a few cycle racks, so I guess we'll have to just wait and see what it looks like when it's finally done.


On a positive note, the raised crossing will make life a lot easier for prams and disabled pedestrians...

I suppose I'm an old cynic, but I do begin to feel that the hugely extended works both there and in Townley are extended so that, once they are finished, we will think things have improved, when they have only actually improved compared with the mess the road works have created - we won't be able to remember back to the time before the changes to realise that things may not be any better, or conceivable may actually be worse. Well, you can fool some of the people...

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Latest Discussions

    • Exactly what I said, that Corbyn's group of univeristy politics far-left back benchers would have been a disaster during Covid if they had won the election. Here you go:  BBC News - Ex-union boss McCluskey took private jet flights arranged by building firm, report finds https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp3kgg55410o The 2019 result was considered one of the worst in living memory for Labour, not only for big swing of seats away from them but because they lost a large number of the Red-wall seats- generational Labour seats. Why? Because as Alan Johnson put it so succinctly: "Corbyn couldn't lead the working class out of a paper bag"! https://youtu.be/JikhuJjM1VM?si=oHhP6rTq4hqvYyBC
    • Agreed and in the meantime its "joe public" who has to pay through higher prices. We're talking all over the shop from food to insurance and everything in between.  And to add insult to injury they "hurt " their own voters/supporters through the actions they have taken. Sadly it gets to a stage where you start thinking about leaving London and even exiting the UK for good, but where to go????? Sad times now and ahead for at least the next 4yrs, hence why Govt and Local Authorities need to cut spending on all but essential services.  An immediate saving, all managerial and executive salaries cannot exceed and frozen at £50K Do away with the Mayor of London, the GLA and all the hanging on organisations, plus do away with borough mayors and the teams that serve them. All added beauracracy that can be dispensed with and will save £££££'s  
    • The minimum wage hikes on top of the NICs increases have also caused vast swathes of unemployment.
    • Exactly - a snap election will make things even worse. Jazzer - say you get a 'new' administration tomorrow, you're still left with the same treasury, the same civil servants, the same OBR, the same think-tanks and advisors (many labour advisors are cross-party, Gauke for eg). The options are the same, no matter who's in power. Labour hasn't even changed the Tories' fiscal rules - the parties are virtually economically aligned these days.  But Reeves made a mistake in trying too hard, too early to make some seismic changes in her first budget as a big 'we're here and we're going to fix this mess, Labour to the rescue' kind of thing . They shone such a big light on the black hole that their only option was to try to fix it overnight. It was a comms clusterfuck.  They'd perhaps have done better sticking to Sunak's quiet, cautious approach, but they knew the gullible public was expecting an 24-hour turnaround miracle.  The NIC hikes are a disaster, I think they'll be reversed soon and enough and they'll keep trying till they find something that sticks.   
Home
Events
Sign In

Sign In



Or sign in with one of these services

Search
×
    Search In
×
×
  • Create New...