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Will we ever give up our cars? MailMarks


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WHAT policies do we want Maidstone Council to adopt for cars in the town centre? It is a very big question – and will get bigger as Maidstone’s population grows by perhaps 40,000 over the next 20 years to about 200,000. The central road system can-


not economically evolve to cope with a heavy traffic increase. So does Maidstone Council adopt policies to keep vehicles out of the centre or tinker tomake the best of a difficult problem? What do Maidstone motorists want? And


how do businesses and shops operating in our town centre see it? Attempts to reduce traffic have had mod-


erate success. The park-and-ride system is quite expensive for council taxpayers, but is popular enough to merit further expan- sion, especially for south Maidstone. Some parts of the centre have been declared sus- tainable areas where parking should be re- stricted and public transport and walking encouraged. But how far should the council go to dis- courage cars? How much should it listen to the public and businesses? It is a mighty dilemma. We love the convenience, speed and


POWER tools and fishing equipment were stolen from a shed in the back garden of a house in Cumberland Avenue, Shepway. Keys were stolen from a vehi-


cle on drive of a home in South Park Road. A box containing cash for vo-


tive candles at All Saints’ Church in the High Street was broken into and the cash stolen. A petrol strimmer and brush


cutter was stolen from a shed on an allotment in Albert Street.


Burglars stole jewellery from


a home in North Pole Road, Barming. There was an attempted bur-


glary at Lloyds Pharmacy in Tonbridge Road. Hand and power tools were


stolen from a shed on an allot- ment in Farleigh Lane, Barm- ing. A Stihl disc cutter was stolen


from a shed on an allotment in Upper Fant Road, Fant. A black BMW 116, registra-


tion YK63 OSV, was stolen from Thrifty Car Rental in Pad- sole Lane. An AppleIpodandagent’s


watch were stolen from a prop- erty in Dixon Close. A Dell computer, computer equipment, and a gent’s Giant Defy racing bike with a white frame and black trim, were stolen from a property in Downs Road. Acastironbathand pipes


were stolen from outside a property in Pine Grove. Computer equipment and jewellery was stolen from a home in Bridge MillWay, Tovil. Burglars stole cash and jew- ellery from a home in Chatham


46 Town


DENNIS FOWLE - President email: dfowle2011@aol.com


comfort of our vehicles taking us door to door. We can include our passengers and luggage (notably heavy shopping bags). Public transport and walking just cannot compete. And if we want Maidstone’s businesses


and retail to thrive – currently they do much better than most – then cars cannot be unduly discouraged. Selection of sus- tainable areas must also make very sound sense. It has a chance where good park- and-ride serves the true town centre. But there are locations that attract visi-


tors from a wide area, often with their es- sential luggage, and here sensible and convenient parking is essential, especially if overflow is likely to impact on nearby streets.


Currently the town centre is well served


by off-street parking with Fremlin Walk a large and very welcome addition; it is a


long time since I struggled to find convenient parking. At times I am concerned about delays on roads approaching Maid- stone. But Iwill suffer another five or 10 minutes per journey rather than give up my car. Public trans- port from my home in a local vil- lage is far from easy. Maidstone must continue to try


to tinker wisely to improve traffic flows and encourage use of public transport. But King Canute would have had big problems trying to hold back the tide of cars and I fear Maidstone Council will be no more successful without taking draconian, un- popular and economically dangerous measures.


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Your table, sir THE transformation of Earl Street into a


major restaurant centre continues. Not many years ago Maidstone was


largely a desert for good eating, but now the offer is wide and increasingly exciting. The Asian taste ofWagamama in the for-


merWaterstones building is an interesting latest addition. Next there will be the un- veiling of the former Maidstone Club as The Giggling Squid. It is a pleasure to eat out inMaidstone now.


Beat the criminals IF YOU CAN HELP, PLEASE PHONE: Police: 101 Crimestoppers: 0800 555 111


Road. A blue Apollo hybrid cycle


was stolen from the garden of a home in Hardy Street. Cash was stolen from a home


in Braunstone Drive, Allington. A heavy breaker Tar-


mac cutter was stolen from a white Transit tipper truck parked on Cornwallis Road. Power tools were


stolen from under the cover of a white Ford Ranger pick-up parked in Mill Road, Barming. A black and green 20” Apollo


cycle was stolen from the car park in Wallis Place, Hart Street.


Intruders searched a home in


Tovil Road and stole jewellery and photographic equipment. Gold jewellery and a Nikon camerawere stolen from a prop- erty in Rainham Close, Tovil. There was an attempted bur-


glary at a property in Heading- ley Road, Allington. A silver Vauxhall Astra van, registration number RO56 WYK, was stolen from a drive- way in Loose Road. A white Yamaha trials motor-


cycle and a crash helmet were stolen from a shed in Church Road, Tovil. There was an attempted bur-


glary at a flat in Scotney Gar- dens, St Peter’s Street. Lead was stolen from a roof in


BowerMount Road. Gold jewellery was stolen


from a property in Brenchley Road. The suspects were two white men. One was about 6ft tall, of medium build, with short black hair and wearing a black jacket. The second was about 5ft 6ins, slim and wearing a black jacket. There was a burglary


at a property in Square Hill Road. There was an attempted bur-


glary at a flat in College Road. The suspect was a slim white man aged about 18, with short dark hair. He was wearing mid- blue jeans and a light hoodie. A black and red Shark motor-


cycle helmet, and a yellow crash helmet with black letter- ing were stolen from a shed in Ufford Close. Two gold and diamond rings


were stolen from a property in Langdale Rise, Allington. Asilver Crossfire 2 Carrera bi-


cycle was stolen from a cycle store inWallis Place. Cash and other items were


stolen from a property at The Thatchers, Allington. A shed in Burleigh Drive, Sandling, was burgled and a Hayter lawnmower, a Stihl strimmer and a petrol can were stolen. A blue Peugeot 406 estate, registration X451 DEP, was


stolen from Randall Street. A Samsung mobile phone, hand tools, a bank card and cash were also stolen.


There was an attempted bur- glary at a property in Marion Crescent, Shepway.


There was an attempted bur- glary at a house in Sheppey Road. A suspect was arrested. Two large council bins were stolen from the garden of a home in Iona Road.


There was an attempt to break in to a shed behind a property in Sandling Lane.


Intruders got in to a house at Kent Life, in Lock Lane, San- dling, and a white antique wash basin was stolen.


A silver BMW 318, registra- tion number AY07 MTJ, was stolen from the driveway of a home in Faraday Road, Penen- den Heath.


Documents, a handbag and a pram were stolen from a home in Hope Street.


Cash, cheques, cards, docu- ments and phones were stolen from a home in Queen’s Road. Burglars searched a home in


Western Road, Fant. It was not known what was stolen.


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