former East Dulwich councillor - how can I help?

[Penguin68]

James - The leaflet ALSO says 'You will also be regietered to vote if you have received information at your current address telling you that you are registered under the new system.'

My personally addressed letter makes it clear that (1) I am registered and (2) my request not to be on the open register is still being honoured. You need to read the letter addressed to you individually before reading the accompanying leaflet to ascertain your status.

[cwjlawrence]

James,

You mentioned several months ago that we could apply for community funding for our streets in September. Do you have any more information please on how to apply and whether we could apply for funding for trees to be planted on our street?

Thanks,

Chris

[James Barber]

Hi Chris,

The next round of Cleaner, Greener, Safer funding opens in September. In November/December we decide which schemes as councillors to support and they'd then start happening April 2015->Mar 2016.

As soon as the scheme is opened I'll add the link to this thread.

[LS1234]

We have just discovered that Southwark have a new rule that you have double line any new dropped curb and then to 2 meters either side of it. Do you know anything about this? It would mean that most people would be putting yellow lines outside their neighbours houses and seems totally excessive! Would like to know your views. Thanks.

[Pugwash]

I have got a dropped kerb and the council put a double yellow line in front of it some years later which means that my daughter cannot park her car across my dropped kerb when visiting.

[James Barber]

Hi Pugwash,

It also means that you can access your drive to come and go when suits.

I suspect the double yellow lines were more to do with being on a curve in a busy road and ensuring sightlines.

Hi LS1234,

What you've described is one option but a number go in without such double yellow lines every year locally.

Council policy has been changed to no longer place white lines. Technically same laws apply but practically people are more likely to park across a drive without a white line. Not the smartest decision ever taken by the current administration.

If you email me privately we can talkabout the specifics of your location and what is possible.

[intexasatthe moment]

"Southwark have a new rule that you have double line any new dropped curb and then to 2 meters either side "

James is this true ? I note that you say that this " is one option but a number go in without such double yellow lines every year locally " . In what circumstances would double yellow lines be extended beyond the dropped curb ? Obviously excluding cases where there are double yellow lines already .

[James Barber]

Hi ITATM,

I'm not aware of such a rule.

WE have a number of dropped kerbs on Ashbourne Grove with white lines being repainted and we're about to havthe same on Elsie Road. In both cases the road was resurfaced and no one has proposed double yellow lines.

It's been a fight to get the white lines put back but council officials were clear no lining was the new Southwark standard.

Sayign all that when CPZ was mooted for Elise Road they were asked if they wanted double yellow lines of white lines during the consultation.

[intexasatthe moment]

Thanks James . Bit of a mystery then ,maybe a misunderstanding has become a rumour ?

[Penguin68]

I think there may be confusion here between curbs dropped to allow off-street parking access (private requests) and curbs dropped by the council to allow disabled/ wheelchair, buggy crossing of streets. These (which are often accompanied in ED by textured pavements for blind/ partially sighted guidance) are 'protected' by double yellow lines to make sure they are not obscured/ blocked by parked cars (and that people using them are fully visible). I can imagine that different protection for different dropped curb purposes could be confused. Where they are at junctions they would anyway be protected by rules governing parking at junctions; but where they were not at junctions additional protection might be required.

[LS1234]

I have been told very clearly by Southwark that all new residential dropped curbs will have yellow lines to 2m either side of the dropped curb unless there is an exceptional reason. It is a new rule that has come into force this year to give cars on the road clearer visibility of cars coming off driveways, it does not apply to current dropped curbs. I was also told that existing dropped curbs that are being redone will most likely not be white lined again in the future.

[intexasatthe moment]

LS1234 - while I can sort of see the reasoning behind this the impact on neighbours will be awful . I hate cars parked on forecourts and have not gone down this route although it would be easy to do at our property. Who's to say that the next step won't be yellow lines on existing dropped curbs ?

I would like to see some figures relating to accidents caused by cars using dropped curb access to support this new policy .

edited to say - won't this encourage people who live next door to someone having a dropped curb installed to have a dropped curb as well ? As they and their visitors will no longer be able to park in the road outside their house . So it'll be forecourt parking and dropped curbs all the way ?

Surely this can't be a new policy ?

[LS1234]

We already have a space for off street parking but the previous owner never had the kerb dropped so I have tried to start the process of doing this and have had a conversation with the man at Southwark who has proposed and had these new rules established. I think they are completely ridiculous. Not only would they be of great inconvenience to anyone else who didn't have off street parking, they cannot be of any safety benefit unless all dropped kerbs in the street are done (which would mean you could not park in some roads at all such as Ashbourne Grove). It seems like this has be changed without any thought for residents...

[intexasatthe moment]

James could you do some digging about this issue of double yellow lines on dropped curbs and clarify ? There seems to be a direpancy between your knowledge and LS1234's experience .

[wee quinnie]

wee quinnie Wrote:

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

> Hi James -

> Just received a letter from Southwark Council this

> morning about the voting registers. (Headlined -

> "Your vote matters. The way you register to vote

> is changing."

>

> The third paragraph says, "Your details are not on

> the open register."; however in the paragraph

> headed "The open register", the following is

> stated, "Your name and address will be included in

> the open register unless you ask for them to be

> removed."

>

>.

I have contacted Southwark council, and this is what they have to say :

We can advise that you personally have been opted out of the Open Register

We can provide the explanation on the letter:

We are obliged by law to take the wording in our letter from the Electoral Commissions recommendations. They have been advised that this has proved to be rather confusing for the electorate.

In Paragraph 3 the letter advises your present status according to our records. Then in Paragraph 6 it advises the electorate who have not ?opted out? their status.

[Otta]

When I read the thread in the lounge, I assumed you were talking about dropped kerbs to help wheelchairs / buggies get in and out of the road, not just any driveway.

[LS1234]

Yes, any new driveway. Have just been sent a letter by Southwark and have copied the info from their website below - i assume "no wait" is the double yellow that I have been told about verbally. It also states that the white h-bars will be removed. James, can we do anything about this? Thanks.

Parking restrictions around Vehicle Crossings

a. See standard DS.002 about providing No Waiting At Any Time restrictions through and in the vicinity of Vehicle Crossings.

NOTE: Broadly, in most instances restrictions are needed through and to 2m either side of each Crossing. However, for Vehicle Crossings on Classified Roads (A and B roads) restrictions are normally needed to the entire extent of related visibility splays (for which see standard DS.114).

b. See standard DS.007 about introducing H-Bar markings and treatment of any existing encountered within a project area.

NOTE: Broadly, H-Bars are not normally permitted and any existing should normally be removed.

[BrandNewGuy]

If this is the case, it needs to be challenged. IThis prevents a. people parking across the dropped kerb space with the agreement of the resident; and b. parking for an extra four metres on the street. It's a scam to reduce the amount of parking available so that residents cry out for a CPZ even though (as we've discovered before) the overalll amount of parking space is reduced. But, hey, the council make a mint, so that's OK.

[intexasatthe moment]

LS1234 - is a vehicle crossing the same thing as a crossover /dropped curb ? To my mind a vehicle crossing would be a road intersection .

I can't find anything on Southwark's website - all the links lead to "Page Not Found " .

[Siduhe]

According to this (which is the formal document containing the standard which LS1234 references) Vehicle Crossings are "features that allow vehicles access over footways so that they can reach driveways or other hard standing areas on private land" so sounds like a dropped kerb to me.

This is a crazy standard, even if it's only applied going forward, which sounds like it will dramatically cut back on available nearby on-street parking wherever a neighbour puts a drop in. It would mean our neighbours couldn't park outside their own home for example.

http://www.southwark.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/8393/ds_132_vehicle_crossings

[intexasatthe moment]

googled DS.132

"DS.132

Vehicle Crossings

This standard explains requirements about the use and the design of crossings over footways and

Cycle Tracks to allow motorised vehicles to reach private land from the carriageway (Vehicle

Crossings)."

3.7 Parking restrictions around Vehicle Crossings

a. See standard DS.002 about providing No Waiting At Any Time restrictions through and in the

vicinity of Vehicle Crossings.

NOTE: Broadly, in most instances restrictions are needed through and to 2m either side of each

Crossing. However, for Vehicle Crossings on Classified Roads (A and B roads) restrictions are

normally needed to the entire extent of related visibility splays (for which see standard DS.114).

BUT ...DS.1234 also contains the following

"2.2 Vehicle Crossing or road junction

a. If combined vehicle movements in and out of an access to private land in any hour are estimated to

be

i. ≤ 6 commercial vehicles movements and/or

ii. ≤12 vehicles movements of any kind

then the access should be designed as a Vehicle Crossing in accordance with the requirements in

this standard. "

which makes me think that all this doesn't apply to forecourt parking for an ordinary home .

[LS1234]

The link I was given to "explain" it to me is on Southwark's website if you search under "download 3338".

[LS1234]

Intexasatthe moment - I'd love you to tell the man at Southwark that for me!!!! The new vehicle crossover department disagree with you unfortunately...

[intexasatthe moment]

Do you see what I mean though ? I think the chap dealing with you has got things wrong ,it just wouldn't make sense for all new crossovers to have yellow lines . And logically they'd then have to extend it to existing crossovers - it would cause chaos .

I hope James come back with help .

[LS1234]

Afraid not, we have a standard letter from Southwark that says "I would refer you to our policy regarding crossovers and the associated requirements for double yellow lines (DYL)" and then the website link I mention above. Have no idea how to fight it.