Green light for 20mph trials near schools
THE go-ahead has been given for 20mph speed limits to be tri- alled at a handful of schools in the borough, including one out- side Hunton Primary. However, the only scheme backed by a traffic regulation order (TRO) will be at Leeds and Broomfield Primary. Signs and line im- provements will be tri- alled in West Lane, Hunton, and signs will be set up near two pri- mary schools in Maid- stone – St Francis' in Queens Road and South Borough in Postley Road. Meanwhile, an advisory
20mph limit using signs and flashing lights will be used in Ham Lane, Lenham, where the speed-cut campaign was sup- ported by a 1,000-signature pe- tition.
Police say they have limited
new speed limits to be “self-en- forcing”. The borough's Joint Transport
Board (JTB) heard the schemes should all be in place by the start of next year and be re- viewed by spring 2013. It is hoped the trials
KCC cabinet member for highways Bryan Sweet- land said: “We have listened to par- ents, county council members and residents. This trial will be conducted outside primary schools without using traffic-calming measures, such as speed humps, to slow cars down.Wewant to find out what difference lower speeds can make and whether measures, such as signs and road mark- ings, can improve safety outside schools.”
resources to proactively en- force traffic offences and require
Greens want speed cuts everywhere CALLS for 20mph limits to be extended to residential areas across the borough have been made by the Green Party. Stuart Jeffery, who addressed the JTB, welcomed the schools experiment as a “small but good step in the right direction”. Afterwards, he added: “I hope that once these schemes have
been shown to be effective KCC will consider bringingMaidstone into the 21st century by giving all its residential streets 20mph limits, as in other county towns. “It is quite disgraceful that Maidstone is at least five years be- hind places such as Oxford, Norwich, Lancaster and Portsmouth.”
A MOTORISTS’ lobby group claims Maidstone Tories have succumbed to political pres- sure on the 20mph issue. The Kent branch of the Asso- ciation of British Drivers (ABD) said: “We believe this push for 20mph outside schools is a Trojan horse to justify county- wide imposition of these artifi- cially low limits, which are likely to apply 24/7. ABD spokesman Brian Mac- dowall said: “Maidstone Con- servatives have capitulated to the Greens/Lib-Dems.
Counting up
Lower limit is a ‘Trojan horse’
He said the Green Party
wants all residential streets downgraded to 20mph, but added: “They have not given any accident statistics for in- juries caused by alleged speed- ing to justify these widespread downgrades, yet they are easily available.” Mr Macdowall quoted from a
2008 KCC report of a three-year study outside 154 Kent schools
the swans! THE mayor’s duties are many and varied but none could be more quirky than the centuries-old “swan upping” ceremony. It involves counting and ringing swans and cygnets on the stretch of the River Medway over which the mayor has jurisdiction. Liberties that were originally granted to the “Queen’s Town of Maidstone” by Elizabeth I in 1559 were extended by James I in 1619 to include the privilege of keeping swans on the River Med- way and marking them, now done by means of a numbered ring on their leg. Cllr BrianMortimer upheld that tradition, accompanied by swan master Eric Philp, who caught and ringed this cygnet, which is now registered in the mayor’s name. His Court of Survey was assisted
by members of the Hampstead and Yalding Cruising Club and the East Farleigh Cruising Club.
To contact Downs Mail just phone 01622 630330
will reduce drivers' speed, change parents’ perception of traffic dangers near school and encourage them to let their children walk or cycle there. Cllr Gary Cooke,who,
as previous JTB chair- man, took up the issue
with Kent Police, said members need to be open-minded about what is learned from the pilot, but added: “I hope that chil- dren's safety throughout the
borough will be enhanced.” Members were also told there
were no child fatalities in Maidstone road accidents last year. On average, there are 10 child-injury accidents a year, including one serious – of which very few are outside schools.
Of 211 crashes recorded
(two fatal, 18 serious and 191 slight), only 17% occurred within 300m either side of the school gate. Both the fatal crashes and
78% of serious injuries hap- pened away from the school gate. He said: “Facts are an incon- venient truth for Greens”, and added: “A far more beneficial approach than blanket penali- sation of drivers would be a greater emphasis, in school and at home, on road safety.”
JOHN
MUNSON SHOW TIME
The Comedy of Errors
The Changeling and Hazlitt Arts Centre
THE popularity of much of Shakespeare’s plays is their modernity. London modern dress productions of ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ and ‘Richard the Third’ have been sell-outs. Local director Rob Fork-
nall’s Changeling and the Hazlitt Arts Centre gave us an absolutely knockout ver- sion of ‘The Comedy of Er- rors’. One left the show wondering: “Why isn’t this turned into a successful comedy series?” It was an absolute hoot
from start to finish. Another Boughton Monchelsea suc- cess.
Jake Hendricks played the
twins, both Antipholus. Le- ander Deeny played the twins Dromio. Just to see these two switching charac- ters, body language, misun- derstanding and fezzes, brought roars of laughter in- terspersed with continuous chuckles. Lucy Thatcher as Adriana
and Rachel Nussbaum as Lu- ciana were the two gorgeous females who contributed to the general merriment and confusion. The way they gave us the lines would have made Shakespeare himself laugh with pleasure. David Corden, Henry Farmer, Vivienne Keen and our own local Tom Oakley made a powerful supporting cast.
Great costumes. Effective, simple set. No throat mikes and we heard every word. Rob Forknall directs this
year’s Hazlitt panto – should be good.
Quality mark MAIDSTONE solicitors Gul- lands has been granted mem- bership of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. To achieve this mark of ex- cellence for the home buying process, practices must un- dergo a strict assessment, com- pulsory training, self-reporting, random audits and annual re- views.
Manholes stolen A NUMBER of manhole covers were stolen on two separate days in the Great Tong area along the A274 in Headcorn. Anyone with information should contact PC Katie Purcell on 01622 690690, quoting crime reference CY/11104/11.
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