PEOPLE who will not give up their cars to save the environment were branded “selfish” by a councillor.
Coun Robin Wilson, a Green Party member of Stockton Heath Parish Council made the comment during a discussion on traffic in the village.
He complained that there was a major increase in traffic movement in the village, and that people always put the needs of the motorists first.
“I was walking along the swing bridge recently and the traffic was backing up. There were many cars with just one person in – they should be on the buses.
“These are just selfish people and they should get out of their cars and onto the buses.”
Earlier members were discussing the increasing number of times the Northwich Road Swing Bridge was “off” to road traffic.
One reason was that a major retailer was taking its wine supplies on boats along the Manchester Ship Canal, the meeting was told/.
Coun Wilson said: “People should be glad about this as it is moving lorries off the road.
“We have to be careful not to prioritise just the needs of motorists. We have to consider pedestrians as well.”
But local resident Patrick Mullee said buses were not always an option for people commuting to work and having to be at railway stations early in the morning.
People would not abandon car travel while the buses were so inadequate.
He added: “I waited 20 minutes for a bus on Sunday, and then it was delayed for another 20 minutes.”
5 Comments
so i take it that this particular person A)does not own a car. B)walks any distance under five miles. C)uses buses and trains for any journey over five miles. D)rides a bike.
i have applied for several jobs recently that require me to have my own transport because they are located away from bus/train routes. as they are around fifteen miles from where i live i would have to use my car to get to them should i be successful.
not only that it costs too much to get a bus anywhere. from my nearest bus stop to town would cost me £1.30 one way. so if me and the Mrs went it would cost us £5.20 there and back. cost in the car for same trip, taking into account wear and tear,tax, insurance,petrol and parking would cost me about £2.20 there and back.
no contest really.
Who on earth voted one of the green loonies onto the council anyway? I understand from my son; that bus fares have risen once again in the past few weeks? Maybe if swampy would like to explain to the voters why that is then maybe people would use the buses. It costs about £2.50 (as far as I know) for a return trip from Westbrook into town…..that is pure extortion
Has his name been misquoted? Surely it is Councillor Gobbin Wilson.
buses just aren’t convienient….I’d have to catch 3 just to get to my place of work, then walk for 10 minutes…not to mention leaving the house at 6.30 in the morning to be there for 8.30. Driving takes me 20-25 minutes….sorry, but not giving up my motor anytime soon!!
Probably some clever quoting by the writer to provoke a reaction.
Quotes aside, everyone has got to get to work, everyone has got to get about. Those that absolutely can’t do without a motor, well that’s just the way it is. But I think Mr Wilson’s real reasoning would be that there’s a good majority that don’t even contemplate an alternative in the sake of convenience.
Fact is, public transport would suit more people, but not everyone. But, there should be more incentives which just don’t exist. Improve the routes, make it cheaper (even free in some cases – families with one car for example) and setup a system for secure car sharing.
I don’t think the council have a real handle on how to deal with the problem judging by recent traffic management ‘innovations’. Maybe their mandate is to make Warrington’s roads unbearable so they can either bring in a congestion charge, or turn people away from the roads.