NEWS ITEM

The Jericho Residents’ Association

Recent concerns

Posted - April 04, 1984 The committee of the J.R.A., like everyone else, has had to move into the vestry of St. Barnabas. Our thanks to the Vicar. Recant concerns have been the buses, flouting of planning permission, traffic, and multi occupancy. Buses; several members of the committee attended the meeting at SS. Philip and James School on Wednesday 28th March. It was vary well attended and the City and County Councillors and officials and the City Bus officials were left in no doubt that we are appalled by the proposed cuts which would reroute the 520 down Woodstock Road, cut out evening and Sunday services and get rid of the 10 service to the John Radcliffe altogether. The blame was laid squarely on mismanagement and the County Council who spend less on transport subsidies ban any other Council in the country, it would need j»3000 p.a. to keep the 520 running down Walton Street and il0,000 to keep the 10 service. Practical suggestions included a mini-bus service for Walton Manor, privately run if needs be; making better use of the Park and Ride buses by putting on more stops during the day; improving late night services by extending them to the station and charging a slightly higher fare; introducing a citywide minibus service to all the hospitals. It was felt that there was a demand for buses and the reason people do not use them is that they are not where they are wanted at the time they are wanted. Planning permissions; The latest racket is to go ahead without asking for permission, gambling on the odds that the Planning Committee will give retroactive permission after it has been found out. It worked a treat for that laboratory in Cranham Street. So, if you have any reason to think this is going on near you, let us know. Traffic; we get a constant stream of complaints about illicit parking, lorries mounting the pavament, ana speeding. It is one of those problems that everyone knows aoout and nobody is prepared to do anything about. We just have to keep on nagging. Multi-occupancy; the same is true here. The official policy is to restrict it. Jericho is a designated General Improvement Area for family residence but the authorities do damn all to stop multi-occupancy. Nos. 49/50 Walton Street have been reported to both the Planning and Health authorities who say they will look into the matter. Notice any difference? If you know of any neighbourhood eyesore let us know about it. Keep the complaints rolling in.

Author: Christine Cowham