Out and About

Another round-up of local news from your hardworking Lib Dem team Out and about this week in Brislington with Jos and Andrew

Green waste update:

Last week we visited Bristol Waste’s facility at Albert Road for a tour of the site. We have also volunteered to do an hour with the crews to see first hand some of the issues they face. During the tour we took the opportunity to ask about the continued suspension of the garden waste service. Bristol Waste were very apologetic and told us there would be an announcement on the reintroduction of the garden waste service at the beginning of October.

In a statement they said, “The national driver shortage is continuing to have a significant impact and in order to maintain the city’s essential refuse and recycling collections, the temporary replacement of the garden waste collection service with drop-off points, will be extended.

Bristol Waste currently has a shortfall of 17 drivers resulting from vacancies, lack of available agency drivers, and absence due to illness and COVID-19. Bristol Waste continue to advertise for new drivers, and are training up potential candidates. 24 Where possible, qualified staff have been redeployed to support the collections service. They are also looking at incentives to recruit more drivers and retain the ones they currently have. We will automatically discount the renewal of people’s subscription to cover the missed collections, however if people are not planning to continue the subscription they can contact the council for a refund.

We understand this will be disappointing for households that use the service. We’d like to thank you for your patience and understanding as we put our full effort in to minimising any disruption.”

Revised plans for Bath Road development:

We wanted to tell you about the revised details for the following planning application:

19/03940/F: Construction of 109 flats, including social rented and shared ownership tenure, and commercial/retail floor space contained in buildings ranging between 4 to 6 storeys, associated access, car and cycle parking, refuse & recycling storage, groundworks and landscaping and all other associated works at 345 Bath Road Bristol BS4 3EW.

Following feedback from various consultees and a meeting with your local councillors, revised details were submitted on the 22nd July 2021 and include changes to the design, scale and massing of the buildings and highways arrangements, including a new bus lay-by. If you wish to comment on the revised application, please reply by 30 September, 2021. You can view the revised details here: www. bristol.gov.uk/planningonline Pedestrian improvements on Hungerford Road:

We had a meeting with Bristol City Council transport officers a while ago and discussed the issue of a zebra crossing on Hungerford Road, which some local residents have been calling for. Budgetary constraints mean the council apply a formula when deciding which schemes to prioritise. Basically, if there have been 5 or more serious incidents within a three year period on the same stretch of road, then improvements will be prioritised. Hungerford Road does not fall into that category. The alternative approach is to apply for funding using the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) process. The deadline for applications for this year has now passed but it is worth considering for next year. Applications for CIL funding need to come from local residents and community groups. Any application is more likely to win approval if there is a lot of local support so there is where the school could get involved, perhaps by organising a local survey or running a petition. We have been in contact with the school to see if they would like to get involved. More details here: https://www.bristol.gov.uk/people-communities/funding-local-projects Another blocked drain reported, this time on Water Lane. Please let us know if your local drain is blocked and we will report it on your behalf.

Litter pick:

Our next community litter pick will be 10am on Saturday, 9 October, meeting at the junction of Whitby Road and Bloomfield Road. This area of the ward is a real litter black spot so hopefully, a good turnout will ensure we make a difference.

Talbot Road Allotment Show:

It was great to attend the Talbot Road Allotment Show for the third year in a row. The fruit and veg on display was most impressive as were the many cakes! The live music and beautiful weather also helped to make this event a great success.

By Jos Clark, Liberal Democrat Councillor (Brislington West) Email: cllr.jos.clark@bristol.gov.uk Mobile: 07584 370429

Andrew Varney, Liberal Democrat Councillor (Brislington West) Email: cllr.andrew.varney@bristol.gov.uk Mobile: 07584 183381