Our litter bins and dog bins are emptied by Somerset Council once a week (usually a Thursday) but we are aware that sometimes this service falls short. We regularly report missed ‘emptyings’ if we are aware of this happening, but it is always easier and quicker ‘to cut out the middleman’ if residents report directly using these links:
- https://www.somerset.gov.uk/environment-and-food-safety/dog-waste-bins/;
- https://www.somerset.gov.uk/environment-and-food-safety/litter-bins-and-drug-debris/
Speed Indicator Device: It is your friend, not your enemy!
Some residents might have noted that the green smiley/red sad Speed Indicator Device (SID) at Crackmore Rocks has not been in situ for the past couple of weeks. Sadly, this is due to vandalism in the early morning hours of Sunday 5th October. CCTV footage shows that between 3.40 and 3.50 am, someone ripped the SID from its pole, breaking its mountings clean off, and threw it into a nearby hedge. An individual can be seen walking back into Milborne Port Village, passing the Gainsborough junction at 3.48am; this suggests, disappointingly, that the culprit might well have been a member of the community. The incident has been reported to police (Crime Number 5225279408). If anyone has any information regarding the incident, or domestic doorbell CCTV footage or similar, you can feed this (anonymously if you prefer) to police, quoting this number.
The SID is there to reduce the speed of traffic coming down the hill past Crackmore Garage; this has been the site of a number of accidents, and many more near misses, over the years. The Parish Council has installed the device in response to several expressions of concern about safety. This is part of a numerous developments in the location, including the installation of the white village ‘gateway’ signs, and asking for a pedestrian crossing to be installed to enable pedestrians to cross the A30 safely, especially important now that the Post Office has moved to the petrol station. This latter project is fully scoped and approved by Somerset Highways, and is now just awaiting the budget to be given to install it – much delayed because of the financial difficulties Somerset Council finds itself in. Somerset Highways have also installed illuminated pole-based speed roundels, together with road marked speed signs.
The SID simply determines how fast vehicles are travelling, communicates this, and records the fact of the speed; it does not have an image-taking camera, and is not a speed enforcement tool. We can use the data to establish whether motorists are speeding, and this can help in lobbying for changes that will make the road safer, such as the pedestrian crossing, but we cannot identify a particular vehicle going too fast, at least not with the SID’s data alone. Hence, if the individual is concerned that they are being clocked beyond the speed limit, their mind can be put at rest. It’s just not that type of machine. It really is just there to help by playing on people’s psychology. Drivers do slow down in response to the sign, and we deliberately bought one that says ‘thank you’ when they do. Volunteers change its batteries and look after it to help with keeping the community safe.
So, when the repaired unit is reinstalled, please leave it alone. It is something that is there protecting our community and making our village better. Chill out.
Cllr. Tim Carty (Chair)