Road Charging?

I didn't realise that. I haven't driven on motorways in the middle of
the night, but the last time I did I remember them being almost
completely empty of traffic (this would have been the M25, the M1 and
whatever other motorways are involved in getting back from north
Wales)

I agree - long distance freight should be on the railways.

 

That would totally suck.

 

Don't tell WC!

Ali

 

SD ha escrito:

As a service to those planning to attend a French Run on a Bandit 12,
there you are...

http://www.bison-fute.equipement.gouv.fr/fr/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=50

then

http://www.bison-fute.equipement.gouv.fr/fr/IMG/pdf/poids_lourds_2006_ang_03_MW_cle2cb369.pdf

Traffic restrictions on the road transportation of goods in vehicles
exceeding 7.5 t maximum authorised load: hazardous and non-hazardous
materials

General ban on vehicle movement across the entire road network
· from 22.00 on Saturdays until 22.00 on Sundays
· from 22.00 on the day before public holidays until 22.00 on the day
after

Additional bans on vehicle movement

· In the winter period: on part of the Rhône-Alpes network (see
diagram opposite) on the Saturdays of 11, 18 and 25 February and 4
March 2006, from 07.00 until 18.00, and then from 22.00 until 22.00 on
Sundays. So, on the Rhône-Alpes network, vehicle movement is
authorised on these four Saturdays from 18.00 until 22.00

· In the summer period: across the entire network on the Saturdays of
22 and 29 July and 5, 12 and 19 August 2006, from 07.00 until 19.00,
and then from 00.00 until 22.00 on Sundays. So, vehicle movement is
authorised on these five Saturdays from 19.00 until 24.00

 

Well it goes with the territory with private education - if they're not
boarders, the little darlings have to be shipped in from the country
pile somehow, darling!

However, when it's happening at local junior schools like it does here,
a town that has schools dotted about within close proximity of all the
main estates, and people are choosing to send their child to one the
other side of town all because the school has a better reputation in
their eyes than the one on their doorstep, then I think something is
very wrong.

It's not even as if as with some of the secondary schools now, the
junior ones specialise in different disciplines - in that scenario, I
can understand why a child might be sent to a school further away than
the nearest one.

In terms of junior schools, apart from kids stuck out in villages no
longer served by a school realistically close enough to walk to,
there's no real excuse for any child to be sent to a school that isn't
classed as the local one and therefore within easy walking distance.

 

Its been shown that decent early years education gives the kids a far
better start when they enter secondary school

--

 

It's also been proven that congestion is getting progressively worse,
and with the school run a significant contributory factor to this.

My point was / is, if all kids were getting the same standard of
education wherever they went to school, then maybe parents, (there will
always be some who will insist school x is better than the one on their
doorstep, and therefore the only one suitable for their beloved
offspring), wouldn't feel so hard done by when councils legislated that
a child has to attend the school nearest to their abode... at least at
primary / junior level, anyway.

 

your point is valid

problem will always be attracting and retaining the best staff to the
inner city schools ,if thier is no financial gain for them they head
for the nice leafy suburbs and you cant really blame them




--

 

Woche enden fährt verbot?

 

The government has just cancelled the majority of its' support for the
canal system.

Let it fall into disuse is the official line.

 

Talking to a teacher, drinking friend of mine in the pub last night, he
has just been to an interview. He turned the job down as he thought it
was miss advertised as a 'consultant special needs teacher[1] covering
several centres'.

What it turned out to be was teaching kids who just don't turn up to
school. They use local village halls to try and get them to attend for
up to 8 hours a week. Afternoons only as they can't get them to turn up
in the mornings. The goal is to teach them enough to read and fill out
benefit forms.

Where has the 'system' gone wrong, I ask myself?
I'm beginning to sound like a grumpy old man.

[1] He is particularly good at teaching kids with special needs. He
didn't think this was where he would be best employed.

 

Oh dear!

My comment that the government has cancelled the majority of its'
support for the canal system was taken from an article in the Guardian
on 3rd August, from information leaked from the Environment Agency. It
explains that the latest proposed cut to British Waterway's budget has
been caused by increased levels of payments to farmers and additional
civil servants to deal with the agricultural payments. Reports also
state that a European fine is to be applied to the British Government
for failing to make a sufficient proportion of its agricultural subsidy
payments to UK farmers on time under a new system introduced this year.
The fine, as well as the increased costs of the new system, is to be met
from the Department for the Environment Food & Rural Affairs, and the
only way it can do this is to cut the budgets of everything other than
those for agricultural subsidy payments, which are protected by European
agreements. So the result is to cancel the majority of its' support for
the canal system. (Along with a lot of other rural matters.)

You brought up funding not me but the reduction is meaningful!

The Environment Agency is also set to set to suffer a £25 million cut to
its budget and British Waterways may have to accept a reduction in its
grant of about 7.5% (£4.5 million) in this financial year, which would
put at risk BW's planned winter maintenance programme. BW has already
agreed a cut to its grant of 5% (about £3 million) for 2006/07 shortly
before the beginning of the financial year, so this further cut would
mean an overall loss of 12.5% of BW's government funding before taking
into account erosion by inflation.

This will result in the canal system falling into disuse if the
scheduled maintenance is not carried out.

 

I'd call that a bite

I was just quoting the Guardian and the Inland Waterways Association
journal of which I am a member.

Everything is down to money but a lot of the support comes in the way
the various government agencies provide physical support to maintaining
the waterways. Roads over canals not pipe the canal under a road. That
was a Prescott thing when he was in transport. He couldn't see there was
a problem. ie Conducting projects that impinge on waterways in a benign
manner even if it does cost a little more. That approach is not
entertained in the directive on cost cutting.

No, that is a statement you are making not what I've said.
It is an indication of the withdrawal of funding and is significant in
the long term existence of the waterways.

Again I only quote from what was written in the Guardian and the IWAJ.
The winter maintenance schedule is of the highest importance to the
waterways because this is the only time the work can be done without the
majority of the users getting in the way. If it is not completed this
winter the effects will carry over to next winter. The government policy
of robbing Peter to pay Paul will directly effect the IW to it's
detriment.

That's cause and effect not extrapolation.

 

Genau.

 

Wochenendfahrverbot, please.

 

No u do bite easily on anything to do with the current government.

Ah the "Give me exactly where it was printed or it's not true" retort.

Also known as the "I don't know my self, can't be bothered to look, pass
the work on to some one else". Very good project management skills!!!!

I was a project manager for years................

Well I'm not going to quote every paper it was in because it was
reported in August. God knows why the Today program dug up four month
old news. I will reference the Inland Waterway Association article on
the funding (not on government support, search the IWA and the
references on that will be found), because it is a fairly good summary
of all the other articles. ie they all copied from each other as I did
from them.

http://www.waterways.org.uk/News/Pressreleases/IWAPressRelease-IWAStrongl
yCriticisesGovernmentCutstoWaterwayFunding


The winter 2006 IWA Journal has actually just dropped through the front
door and is full of the cutbacks to agencies to cover the government
sort fall and how that will effect the waterways. I'm busy at the moment
but give me time and I'll quote that as well.

 

Well 98% of the words are directly taken from the article I quoted.

I quoted the article on *funding* as an example and a way you could find
out the current policy towards the Inland Waterways. Also it was one of
many I quoted from. I use the original derived from the Guardian quote
because some people believe if it's not in the Guardian it can't be true

You believe anything you want. You can be in a world all on your own.

As a long time member of the Inland Waterways Association I've followed
the shenanigans of the current and previous governments with regard to
the IW. Nether has anything to be proud of.

Canals are an important part of our heritage and an asset that I believe
could be exploited for heavy goods. Some timber importers are returning
to the canals.

The current government withdrawal of support to the infrastructure of
which the canals are a part will result in their demise. The only way
out at the moment would be a price increase to use the canals which
would remove private use and put commercial use out of businesses.

Now for your benefit if you are doing the project manager role:

Removal of support to the infrastructure of which the canals are a part
constitutes a majority of support to the canals.

The government policy that causes it, is its' official line.

I notice you removed my "cause and effect" reference.

Me, I like the canals and have enjoyed them immensely and now I'm off
out to repair a neighbouring farmer's quad bike.

 

There's something to do with colonic irrigation here, but I can't
quite put my finger on it.

 

I wouldn't want too.

 

Sorry, longtimenoGermanspeak.