Letters
Colin the Sherborne railway station man: For the first time in over a year I went to Sherborne station to find out train times for a trip to London. I never use the internet for information and purchase of tickets for Colin, at Sherborne station, was always there, issuing tickets and advice... the font of all train knowledge! Disaster – no Colin, he has retired! I know I am not the only person who will be missing him – there must be hundreds of people who will feel the same. Wherever you are, Colin, may I say a big Thank You for all your help over the years, you will be sadly missed. Any chance you could come out of retirement? Maggie Forbes-Buckingham Sherborne n I was very impressed by the well worded letters sent by year 4 pupils of Gillingham Primary School written on the subject of balloons. Congratulations to them and their teacher, Julie Scammell, on raising the subject of the dangers these present to not only to sea life but land animals also. This applies everywhere, not just Gillingham. Well Done year 4. June Maitland Milborne St Andrew n Mike Keatinge’s response (March 19) to Andrew Morrison, highlights the need to focus on solutions that are economically viable, achievable and based on proven technology. Instead of posing a massive disposal problem, nonrecyclable municipal waste could be viewed as a continuous, never-ending source of fuel for conversion to electricity in MWE incinerators. High temperature incineration in autoclaves (pyrology) has already been introduced, with the advantage of minimising emissions and ash residue. Preferred locations would be on 32
Cartoon by Lyndon Wall justsocaricatures.co.uk
brown field sites eg redundant coal-fired fired power stations, with relevant infrastructure still in place. Landfill sites and exporting UK waste could (and should) soon become things of the past. In an ideal world, our PM will task the wonderful Kate Bingham, to devise and speedily implement a strategy , as she did so successfully to give us a covid-19 vaccine. Greenies and Nimbys, please climb out of your trenches! Get up in your helicopters and look down on the whole battlefield! There is no time to lose. Gordon Ratcliffe Chetnole n I had my second vaccine this morning at the Blackmore Vale Partnership Surgery and wish to thank all the doctors and nurses and staff involved. It was so well organised. A very big Thank You. Eve Eyres Sturminster Newton
n Regarding Pip Taylor’s concerns (Letters, March 19th) about speeding traffic in Bath Road, I can assure him that since the summer of 2014, efforts have been made to monitor speeds and report car and registration details of those offending to Dorset Police. This is carried out by volunteers, currently eight, who make up Sturminster Newton’s Community Speedwatch team. The team operates in five other town locations, all sites vetted by the police in 2014. Although parked vehicles can be an obstruction to those exiting drives and side roads, it is evident from monitoring sessions in Bath Road and our other locations, that they actually help to reduce traffic speed, as indeed do our high-viz jackets! Regrettably, in line with Government restrictions, CSW activities have been mainly curtailed since the first lockdown. We will be allowed to resume when restrictions are
eased. However, the data the team has submitted over the years has helped to bring speeding issues around the town to the attention of the police. As a result, during lockdowns, the police Trucam van with its enforcement laser has monitored speed at three of our sites, including Bath Road, the last time there on March 8. All offending drivers have been issued with a ticket. The Trucam operator has also worked alongside team members at their monitoring sessions. In addition, although not a camera, Bath Road is to have a SID (Speed Indicator Device). Poles will be erected at three of our sites so that the SID can be moved around. At each selected location speed was monitored by the police to establish the need for a SID. Thanks go to Carole Jones, our county councillor, who has campaigned for this. With a bigger team, speed monitoring sessions would be more frequent. CSW is a country-wide initiative so if speeding vehicles concern you then step forward as a volunteer. In Sturminster’s case the town council is your point of contact. Annie Adkins, CSW Coordinator n Stuart Jones completely misses the point of my letter, which is primarily pointed at local democracy, accountability and professionalism. Few people would question the need for SEND provision but as was made clear in the recently received Dorset Council News, this newly acquired expensive facility COULD be used for this purpose. As I said in my first letter, this expenditure was made in advance of any proposal of use being identified specifically and correctly costed on that basis. I also made the point that with the implied economies of scale on which the merger of the councils was justified, there
