A bumper round up of local news

The national government wants to encourage more people to take up active travel in order to reduce obesity and create a healthier population better able to successfully fight off coronavirus infection. This scheme will provide the space needed for people to keep fit and lead healthier lives.

Green spaces are proven to benefit people’s mental health and well-being. This scheme will provide an important green space for the local community in an area of densely-populated housing that currently lacks greenery and community spaces.

The former Brislington Railway Line is a designated wildlife corridor, supporting a huge amount of flora and fauna. Unlike the destructive and damaging road proposal, this scheme will have minimal impact on local wildlife.

This year’s Covid-19 pandemic has been very hard on our economy, both locally and nationally, and job losses are likely to continue to rise. This proposal will provide work spaces and job opportunities for dozens of people, who will also benefit the wider local economy, for example, by supporting the shops on Sandy Park Road.

This land has been largely neglected and unused since the 1960s. This scheme would put the land to good use, protecting and enhancing the local environment and providing a stimulus for the local economy. We recognise that BCC/WECA have earmarked this land for a future road scheme. While we are both vehemently opposed to such a scheme, we note that the development proposal would be time-limited to ten years and would not prevent a future road scheme from going ahead should BCC/ WECA wish to proceed.

We hope you will give this proposal serious consideration.”

Please remember, this scheme is only temporary and Bristol City Council is still forging ahead with planning for their road scheme and if this planning application is rejected, road building is scheduled to begin in 2023. It’s also worth noting that the application from Greenways and Cycleroutes Limited, who will be building the active travel corridor as part of the Meanwhile Creative development, has been recommended for refusal by Bristol City Council’s transport department. It seems the council is worried the proposal will be so popular, it will prevent their road scheme from going ahead!

https://pa.bristol.gov.uk/online-applications/ applicationDetails.do?keyVal=QV9J2MDNLYO00&activeTab=summary&fbclid=IwAR0Ldm_KcNrLq8hhI_VFPg0xcJ3h-Ah97_RGFp541HATX4kqyD1mc9nVP9E

As we reported a few days ago, Bristol City Council is suspending its green waste collection service for ten weeks. Here’s the statement:

“A national driver shortage and the continued impacts of Covid-19 mean Bristol Waste are currently operating with a significant reduction in drivers.

They’re doing everything they can to minimise disruption to collections, including working additional hours, moving drivers from other areas of the business to work on collections, and redeploying office staff to support the frontline.

However, to allow them to maintain essential waste and recycling services, garden waste collections will be suspended for ten weeks, including sack collections, starting with immediate effect. Unfortunately, the shortage also means they are not able to return for missed collections. Details of discounts and refunds available for those affected by the disruption will be sent directly to subscribers. We are also working on an interim solution which subscribers will be notified of. Where possible, we encourage residents to compost their garden waste at home.

We hope these measures will ensure other work can continue as usual, but we ask for your support in avoiding putting extra strain on the services. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work through the issue.”

Bus shelter fixed:

Well done Tesco for fixing the bus shelter adjacent to their Brislington superstore. Most of the plastic windows had been vandalised and so the shelter afforded very little protection from the wind and rain. This was first reported to us by a local resident back in early May. We consequently visited the store and spoke to the manager, who confirmed that new panels had been ordered.

BS4 Good Gardens:

Congratulations to everyone who has received a BS4 Good Garden sticker this year. Your efforts are much appreciated and your gardens clearly bring joy to the whole community. Thank you especially to the organisers and judges who have given up a lot of their free time to make this competition such a fantastic success once again this year.

Full Council feedback:

We are absolutely delighted that in Pride Month, the Bristol Lib Dem motion on the LGBT+ community and mental health provision received unanimous cross-party support at Full Council last week. You can read more about it here:

https://www.bristollibdems.org/lib_dems_ secure_unanimous_backing?fbclid=IwAR1Q9Rl16zqleVEcS7xBQfGJMY1qiFRLSfthT-YJs5vm-uQ9aXGL3ExhFwY

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