Random Irritations

[Patster1969]

The endless moaning by too many about the traffic difficulties in our town as significant changes to town centre roads and pavement widening are both undertaken - all to make the pedestrian, visitor and shopper experience more comfortable and enjoyable. Yes it's not great at the moment - but it's due to be completed next month (Nov).

Meanwhile those moaning about the disruption; the future impact on traffic flow through the town; and the current impact on shops seem determined to drive visitors and shoppers away from town with their continual moaning and telling any who listen to go elsewhere. Well that's going to really help the shopkeepers through this period of disruption - so very well done.

And you know what? Most of it is because they can't be bothered changing their route to wherever they are going...or change the car park they park in as they can't be bothered with walking for an additional 5mins to and from their car; or they can't be bothered with waiting two minutes at some new traffic lights.

Yes there is inconvenience and I experience too...but I can see the potential benefits the changes will have on the town and so I am absolutely supportive and willing to put up with the inconvenience.

My Mrs tells me to avoid Facebook where most of the moaning is done as it just infuriates me. And so I do - but it's sometimes difficult to avoid as I hear members at the club doing the same moaning - and they are the same people who moan about a significant change we are doing re-aligning our 2nd hole. But that's a separate irritation I may well post about.

My goodness we seem to have found ourselves living in an incredibly selfish and entitled 'all about me' society.

Personally, the changes in Farnham are for the better. A bit inconvenient, yes, but necessary, as they should make the journey around the town quicker & easier.
The Farnham-ites on the FB page though. Literally every building that is younger than 100 years old is a disgrace/not in keeping & 'everything was so much better back then' - they seem to want to go back to an era of gas lamps, no electricity & outside toilets.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

Personally, the changes in Farnham are for the better. A bit inconvenient, yes, but necessary, as they should make the journey around the town quicker & easier.
The Farnham-ites on the FB page though. Literally every building that is younger than 100 years old is a disgrace/not in keeping & 'everything was so much better back then' - they seem to want to go back to an era of gas lamps, no electricity & outside toilets.

Only for the serfs though..

 

[IanM]

New low from the bbc today. License cancelled

 

[jim8flog]

Pardon? They deliberately narrowed the road?
If it was wider than it is now, then rather than digging up the edges, surely it would have been better to install some Armco down the middle and paint lane markings, converting it into a kind of "dual carriageway lite".

That was when they took it down from 4 lanes to 3 (I did say from memory)

Like virtually any road in the West Country it was/is very hard to get the money spent on proper upgrades. Just look at Stonehenge, nothing has changed in the 50 years I have driven up and down past it (other than to make it worse when they blocked off the road past it) and made everybody drive past it on the A303.

There has been a campaign going on for as long as I can remember to link the Illminster bypass with the dual carriageway Honiton bypass, to Exeter.

The A358 (Illminster to Taunton) was just another missed chance to create a decent road when it was moved to avoid going through Horton Cross and Ashill. I have spent many an hour on that road stuck after a major traffic incident.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

That was when they took it down from 4 lanes to 3 (I did say from memory)

Like virtually any road in the West Country it was/is very hard to get the money spent on proper upgrades. Just look at Stonehenge, nothing has changed in the 50 years I have driven up and down past it (other than to make it worse when they blocked off the road past it) and made everybody drive past it on the A303.

There has been a campaign going on for as long as I can remember to link the Illminster bypass with the dual carriageway Honiton bypass, to Exeter.

The A358 (Illminster to Taunton) was just another missed chance to create a decent road when it was moved to avoid going through Horton Cross and Ashill. I have spent many an hour on that road stuck after a major traffic incident.

As someone living in Northumberland I can relate strongly to the issues you have. One of the big issues that people here have identified is that the formula that is used to establish if a road upgrade is 'good value or worthwhile' is loaded against regions like our own and strongly in favour of the SE of England in particular. It's a self fulfilling prophecy that means the bulk of spending is in the same places over and over. Bitter? Yes.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

As someone living in Northumberland I can relate strongly to the issues you have. One of the big issues that people here have identified is that the formula that is used to establish if a road upgrade is 'good value or worthwhile' is loaded against regions like our own and strongly in favour of the SE of England in particular. It's a self fulfilling prophecy that means the bulk of spending is in the same places over and over. Bitter? Yes.

As one who lives very much in the SE and who drove up to your neck of the woods a few months ago, I would say the distinct lack of road works and tail backs as well as the much better road surface conditions made us all very jealous.
I suspect it is very much a case of "grass is greener" etc

 

[Hobbit]

As someone living in Northumberland I can relate strongly to the issues you have. One of the big issues that people here have identified is that the formula that is used to establish if a road upgrade is 'good value or worthwhile' is loaded against regions like our own and strongly in favour of the SE of England in particular. It's a self fulfilling prophecy that means the bulk of spending is in the same places over and over. Bitter? Yes.

The talk about dualing the A1 north of Newcastle has been going on for 30 years. It was always a coin toss whether I stayed on the A1 all the way to Edinburgh or went up via the A697/A68 or the A68. Whichever route, it was never quick. If I needed to go up there on business, I’d try and arrange the meeting for a Monday, and travel up Sunday evening.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

The talk about dualing the A1 north of Newcastle has been going on for 30 years. It was always a coin toss whether I stayed on the A1 all the way to Edinburgh or went up via the A697/A68 or the A68. Whichever route, it was never quick. If I needed to go up there on business, I’d try and arrange the meeting for a Monday, and travel up Sunday evening.

It's not just the A1, they are desperately trying to upgrade the roundabout, Moorhouse Farm for anyone who knows the area, connecting the end of the A19 to the A1. It's a bottleneck every day without fail. It doesn't pass the test though.

Drive on it every day and tell me it doesn't need upgrading, wouldn't make a huge difference to those using it .

 

[Lord Tyrion]

As one who lives very much in the SE and who drove up to your neck of the woods a few months ago, I would say the distinct lack of road works and tail backs as well as the much better road surface conditions made us all very jealous.
I suspect it is very much a case of "grass is greener" etc

We'd quite like some roadworks if they were the type that modernised the road system up here. We don't expect a motorway, just a fully functioning dual carriageway would be nice , maybe slip roads that weren't dangerous.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

We'd quite like some roadworks if they were the type that modernised the road system up here. We don't expect a motorway, just a fully functioning dual carriageway would be nice , maybe slip roads that weren't dangerous.

Ahh, you see we get roadworks that appear overnight, closing roads and you never see anything being done. Then 4 nights later they go, just like that.

 

[Hobbit]

It's not just the A1, they are desperately trying to upgrade the roundabout, Moorhouse Farm for anyone who knows the area, connecting the end of the A19 to the A1. It's a bottleneck every day without fail. It doesn't pass the test though.

Drive on it every day and tell me it doesn't need upgrading, wouldn't make a huge difference to those using it .

If I was due early in the Office in Blyth ind park I’d stay at the Holiday Inn, Gosforth Park. I went from there around the back of Cram.

 

[Slime]

New low from the bbc today. License cancelled

What have I missed?

 

[Crazyface]

What have I missed?

Does it really matter? There's a million reasons to do this, you know, the bit that was posted.

 

[Crazyface]

Manchester seemingly getting above itself. The cost of an overnight stay is rocketing. It's a smelly dump, but the nearest gig place. BUT, have no fear, I'm going to start going to Leeds. Much nicer I think.

 

[RichA]

What have I missed?

Presumably upset about the lack of critical insight in the Taylor Swift article.

 

[Fade and Die]

What have I missed?

Probably something Anti-Semitic. It normally is.

 

[Pin-seeker]

Manchester seemingly getting above itself. The cost of an overnight stay is rocketing. It's a smelly dump, but the nearest gig place. BUT, have no fear, I'm going to start going to Leeds. Much nicer I think.

Overnight stay in Leeds on a Saturday has also gone up a lot.
I do like a day sesh in Leeds tho,but I actually prefer Manchester

 

[Arthur Wedge]

Awful news in Manchester today

 

[jim8flog]

As one who lives very much in the SE and who drove up to your neck of the woods a few months ago, I would say the distinct lack of road works and tail backs as well as the much better road surface conditions made us all very jealous.
I suspect it is very much a case of "grass is greener" etc

I had family in Plymouth at one time. I always travelled home to Somerset on Saturday around 6pm and the traffic travelling due west was continuous and often at a complete standstill all the way from Plymouth (and probably in to Cornwall) all my way home (almost in to Wilts).

I also have family in Hertford and the same came can be seen virtually all the way along the A303 to the M3 when I travel up there.

 

[Beezerk]

The bleakness of a premier inn when you are on your own

Amen to that, I’ve just about been living in them for the past few months