LETTERS TO THE EDITOR


A horror show for cyclists Dear Sir – I have just read the article re- garding Maidstone being named the most dangerous place in Kent for cycling. I am a regular cyclist and I also own a


50cc moped, and I felt compelled to write to you and give you a first hand account of how bad travelling around Maidstone on two wheels actually is. I must point out that I amalso a car driver and have been for 23 years. I either cycle or ride my moped to work


every day, and the selfishness and care- lessness of Maidstone drivers is shocking. Much more needs to be done to educate road users about reckless driving and dis- regard for cyclists. The Think Bike signs in Maidstone are mainly on the backs of buses and not anywhere in the vicinity of traffic island or bike paths. The campaign is weak and doesn’t work. Spot Lane, Bearsted – The absolute worst place I experience every day is Spot Lane with the give way islands. It would seem that car and van drivers abide by the give way signs ONLY with regard to other cars. Every day I experience a situation that forces me to break, swerve to avoid being hit and on more than one occasion I have been forced onto the footpath to avoid going through someone’s windscreen. To make matters worse, the verbal abuse


Cyclists must heed laws too Dear Sir – Iwas prompted to write after see- ing the article “Kent cyclists most at risk in town” in the November edition of your ex- cellent newspaper. A KCC spokesman supported the pro-


posed 20mph limit for the town centre, say- ing “they can also help people move around more safely and independently, improving accessibility for the elderly, vulnerable road users and disabled people”. Fine, but can somebody please make the


rules about pavements clear, especially to our increasingly multi-cultural population. Cyclists who use the pavements both on ap- proach roads and in the town centre itself are actually breaking the law. The cyclist who whizzed past me down Gabriels Hill this morning was doing in ex- cess of 20mph and the London Road pave- ments are positively lethal when cyclists are using them, with acceleration occurring when they reach the underpass on the Broadway and speed down the slope there. Approaching from behind is not only ir- responsible, it is downright dangerous.Had I suddenly taken a step to my right this morning, therewas no way the cyclist could have avoidedme at the speed hewas doing.


You can write to us at: Downs Mail, 2 Forge House, Bearsted Green Business Park, Bearsted, Maidstone, ME14 4DT or e-mail: info@downsmail.co.uk


from drivers is staggering, especially as it’s the perpetrator who is in the wrong 100% of the time. Obviously, the drivers are far too impor-


tant to wait the three seconds itwould take to let a cyclist or motorcyclist through when it’s their right of way and therefore take the attitude that a car will easily win the battle against a cyclist. It’s probably an obvious assumption to


say that school runs are particularly treach- erous. Only on Monday Iwitnessed amum actually speed up to “beat me” through the island, even though it wasmy right ofway. In the process she nearly hit amother with two children who was crossing the road. Then she actually gave me the finger and slammed her horn at the woman crossing. Three seconds was all she would have needed to wait for me to pass her.


Ashford Road – The bright pink cycle path along Ashford Road opposite Turkey Mill has bike icons and blue signs depicting walkers on one side and cyclists on the other, but it isn’t enough for some people. To cycle along this supposed bike path is an absolute nightmare, for fear of running into a pedestrian who is ignoring the obvi- ous.


This forces cyclists into the road, where


it really is a game of chance. Cars deliber- ately drive close to you or swerve in front


I have seen instances in Week Street


where cyclists seem to enjoy dodging in and out of the shoppers on their bikes (and I am not talking about children here). An attempt at reproach is usually met with either a curse or the usual two-fingered salute. Speak up for cyclists by all means, but re- member that many of us are unable to ride a bike any more and are helping to keep the traffic down by using the pavements and buses to access the town. Valerie Leonard, Allington


In Europe means in work Dear Sir – This week a report by Britain's biggest business organisation, the CBI, found that every year each person in theUK benefits to the tune of £1,225 from EU mem- bership, compared to an annual contribu- tion to the EU budget of just £116. That is undeniably a good deal. Meanwhile, a recent poll has found that


6% of businesses in the UK say they would close if we left the EU. That could mean thousands of businesses closing and hun- dreds of thousands of jobs at risk. Put simply, ‘in Europe’ means ‘in work’. Pulling out of the EU would risk throwing our recovery away and putting thousands of jobs at risk.


of you for their own amusement because, as I have had drivers shout out to me on many occasions, “there’s a bike path there, use it!” And finally the... One-way system in town – The signs in the road depicting what lanes lead where are obviously deciphered by drivers as ‘use whatever lane you like, it’s a race, have fun!’


Considering Maidstone town is normally


at crawling pace anyway, the sight of a cy- clist or moped rider who has the audacity to be in front of them is too much for some drivers to bear. I can almost hear them say: ‘Ohmy days, that cyclist is going the same speed as me in this traffic jam. I must over- take them at all costs because they may delay me when the roads become clearer just up ahead!’ Around Maidstone, whether I am on my


bike or moped, I have had drivers overtake me just to do a left turn 20 yards in front, had people race past me and swerve across me just to get in front of me at a red traffic light and had cars overtake me even though it’s a 30mph zone and they risk a head-on accident. Perhaps I should strap a camera to my


bike helmet and send you the footage... it’s an absolute horror show. Matthew Fillery, Grove Green


Liberal Democrats, as the party of ‘In’, are focused on helping businesses create more jobs in the UK by reforming the EU from within.We’ve already helped to deliver one million new jobs since 2010. Now we want to help create one million more. In Maidstone and theWeald nearly 5,000


jobs depend on trade with Europe. As we emerge from severe recession, is this the time to put jobs at risk? Rob Bird, Kent County Councillor for Maidstone Central


Road opportunity missed Dear Sir – Recently, Linton crossroads was subject to some disruption while work was undertaken, resulting in a meagre improve- ment, in the opinion of many. With a little more forethought, they should


have widened the exit of Heath Road (from Coxheath) at the traffic lights to allow twove- hicles of moderate or larger size to pass each other. Now, as before, if a larger vehicle is waiting


to turn right onto the A229 Linton Hill, it blocks traffic turning left towards Maidstone or those going straight on to Boughton Monchelsea.


Mick Sloman,Wilberforce Road, Coxheath College investment in higher-level skills


STUDENTS at MidKent College’s centre for higher-level skills will be the next to benefit from a multi-million pound redevelopment project. The Department for Business, Innovation


and Skills announced that the college had been successful in its application for funding under round four of the college capital in- vestment fund. It means that the centre for higher-level


skills – formerly the University for the Cre- ative Arts (UCA) atMaidstone – will be com- pletely transformed and equipped with state-of-the-art facilities. MidKent College chief executive Stephen Grix said: “Having spent £86 million on our


brand new Medway Campus in Gillingham and just over £20m on the first phase of the Maidstone Campus redevelopment, it was only natural that the higher-level skills centre would be next to benefit from significant in- vestment in the second phase.


“We are dedicated to providing a realistic alternative to university and are confident the courses taught at the centre will help provide the advanced skills many employers are look- ing for.” Work on the second phase is due to begin


in the middle of 2014 and should be com- plete by September 2015. Many of the college’s higher education courses – which include foundation degrees and Higher National Diplomas in subjects ranging from business and engineering to health and social care and more – are based at the centre for higher-level skills. Visit www.midkent.ac.uk for more infor- mation.


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