The following statement was read out to Planning Committee hearing the application from Linden Homes. This application represented a complete revision of the original plan that had been refused by the Committee and on appeal.
Cllr David Kendall is asking local residents and bus users to back him in trying to save the 73a and 73b bus services covering Woodman Road and Clements Park in Warley. First Buses recently announced that they will no longer be running the sections of the route via Clements Park and Woodman Road that operate between 0900 and 1400 on weekdays. These changes are set to come into effect from the 5th May. David contacted the Passenger Transport Dept at Essex County Council several weeks ago and asked for an alternative operator to be found as these routes provide a vital lifeline for many residents particularly the elderly. He suggested that Brentwood Community Transport should be contacted to see if they could assist but he is still waiting to hear if that has been done. If no bus operator can be found to cover these areas it will be a big blow to many bus users in Warley. It will also be very frustrating because when the Clements Park estate was built alot of money was spent on installing raised kerb bus stops
Local Liberal Democrat, Cllr Julia Cherrett is delighted by the announcement by Ofcom that people who use phone numbers beginning with 08, 09 or 118 should in future have a much clearer idea of how much their calls will cost.
Spokes East Kent Cycle Campaign are asking all election candidates standing in east Kent their views on a number of cycling-related issues. Read the questions, and my responses, below:
Right across Essex, Conservative-run Essex County Council is turning down requests for repairs of some major potholes and road defects. Here are just a few extraordinary examples.
Heather said "I have been appalled recently to discover that schools across Shropshire have been told that they will have to pay more than £10,000 for a broadband service they can get locally for around £2,000! I know that Chirbury has a bill in excess of £14,000 and Hope £11800 whereas other schools of similar size are paying much less. At a time of squeezed budgets this is pure extortion - just to cover the Council's costs for a badly negotiated contract. This has a huge impact on small rural schools that will now have to find thousands of pounds from their ever shrinking budgets just so they can keep up with the modern age.