The newly landscaped Dulwich Square

[DulvilleRes]

Another spectacular own goal from the shadowy and opaque One Dulwich and their cheerleaders on this forum ( who somehow know all the minutiae of local politics, but weirdly don't know anything about One Dulwich) - all this endless criticism of the council and individual councilors merely reinforces the suspicion that permanently cranking up traffic issues/ LTN issues is a political project. The bulk of official questions to Southwark when the anti-LTN lobby do break cover are from prominent local Conservatives 

Whatever the rights and wrongs of Indian sandstone, had the council got local sandstone they would be moaning about the fact it is more slippery / it costs too much. If One Dulwich really are the community-based organisation they profess to be, just show some respect to their neighbours and answer the basic questions as to who they are and who funds them. 

[ab29]

@DulvilleRes am not part of One Dulwich but am very grateful for what they are doing. Am just an ordinary person living on LL - messaged me in privete if you want to meet

[first mate]

Ditto, except I'll skip the meeting up bit. The likes of DR find it excruciating that a group posting online manages to accurately reflect the views of many local residents without those residents necessarily being involved with said group. I think it is so scary for Council cheerleaders like DR because they cannot pin down, undermine or control the dissenting views and the objections just keep coming.

As for the conspiracy theory that dissenting views voiced on here are all part of a secretive political group spinning an agenda, seriously, get a grip.

[DulvilleRes]

2 hours ago, first mate said:

Ditto, except I'll skip the meeting up bit. The likes of DR find it excruciating that a group posting online manages to accurately reflect the views of many local residents without those residents necessarily being involved with said group. I think it is so scary for Council cheerleaders like DR because they cannot pin down, undermine or control the dissenting views and the objections just keep coming.

As for the conspiracy theory that dissenting views voiced on here are all part of a secretive political group spinning an agenda, seriously, get a grip.

So, you aren't interested in knowing who your spokespeople are? Not interested in One Dulwich's utter lack of transparency? Not interested in the fact that the bulk of questions raised by One Dulwich bear an uncanny resemblance to the questions raised in person by prominent local Conservatives? Not interested in the fact that at the fact that one local senior Conservative recently castigated her colleagues in a large local public meeting over adopting underhand tactics when it came to local issues?

It is important that local issues are raised and debated, but I would have thought you might have had some interest in transparency in local democracy. In the context of politics being subverted nationally and internationally by opaque and unaccountable interest groups, I find the lack of curiosity many anti-LTN posters show as to what might be happening on their doorstep baffling. Seriously, get a grip.

I can't see much evidence that One Dulwich reflects a significant level of local support at all - we only have their word for it.

 

2 hours ago, ab29 said:

@DulvilleRes am not part of One Dulwich but am very grateful for what they are doing. Am just an ordinary person living on LL - messaged me in privete if you want to meet

That is a kind offer, which I appreciate.  

[alice]

D res. You are fixated on OneDulwich.

and are totally unable to see the many  problems of repeatedly spending  such massive amounts on the richest and greenest part of the borough. How such spending jars on true labour supporters.  But your implication that people like me would vote Conservative because of it is actually laughable.  
 

[Rockets]

4 hours ago, DulvilleRes said:

Another spectacular own goal from the shadowy and opaque One Dulwich and their cheerleaders on this forum

Do you actually know what an own-goal is? Let me give you an example....a council using paving from India for an active travel intervention designed to help reduce emissions...

Just how is that an own-goal for One Dulwich...please do explain..

I tell you what, thank goodness for someone going to look at the packing cases for the paving slabs to see where they were from to expose the council's hypocrisy...a bit of citizen journalism holding those in power to account! We should be celebrating them and if it was OneDulwich well done to them.

Edited November 16 by Rockets

[first mate]

2 hours ago, DulvilleRes said:

So, you aren't interested in knowing who your spokespeople are?

Cardinal flaw in your point is that One Dulwich are not 'my spokespeople'. Are LCC and Southwark Council yours?

Your snipe about transparency is laughable, especially when this Labour Council has been anything but where the LTN/CPZ saga is concerned. A lack of transparency is precisely what so many of us are angry about.

You carry on and take comfort from your delusion that this is all a Tory plot managed by shady and opaque figures with a hidden agenda. Politicians of all hues will always jump on bandwagons, after all. I hate to break it to you though, but me and probably all the other naysayers on here are nowt more glamorous than hacked off local residents.

[Rockets]

I do wonder sometimes whether councillors are coming on here and posting under someone else's name such is the blind faith some are putting in the council....all very Leo Pollack at times...and when you read the stuff some post probably the only plausible explanation for the fan-boi approach to everything the council does.

[malumbu]

There are 100s if not thousands of posts here by maybe ten or 15 of you concerned about LTNs.  And CPZs.  And ULEZ extensions.  Certainly with the first and last highly unlikely to change things.  Local, Mayoral and National elections have kept or swung to Labour.  There has been the odd exception - Tower Hamlets, a stronger car culture, Uxbridge - who cares?  I similarly don't care about the outer boroughs who can stay Tory unless Reform split the vote.

I'm wondering when you will get used to things/accept the situation and pick battles you may be able to win.

A reality check?

My last post on LTNs.  

Edited November 18 by malumbu
Correction and a farewell

[alice]

You’ve missed the point

[Rockets]

Mal, this isn't going away. The council is reaping what they sowed. They have, and continue to, behave appallingly, treating their constituents with contempt. They lie and they manipulate in the process of getting what they want.

A increasingly large number of local residents will not forgive them for that and with each own goal they make it worse for themselves as more people become aware of their hypocrisy.

Edited November 16 by Rockets

[Penguin68]

It is certainly something I've noticed, that certain posters seem unable to accept any criticism of either Southwark Council or cyclists, often it seems the same posters. Whereas people who do criticise either group seem capable of additionally offering praise, where it's due. That does suggest, at least, an agenda. Which I suppose may be unconscious. What is additionally interesting is ascribing belief sets of those who at times criticise Southwark or cyclists as Tory, or even further to the right. Some I'm sure are, some may be Labour voters who still don't like what they see locally, sometimes. Some may even be Lib Dems (who held local seats in living memory). But it's always a hidden Tory conspiracy, to some. 

Edited November 17 by Penguin68

[Rockets]

The demonising of anyone who dares challenge the council's point of view and actions is a dangerous precedent. First it started (often by the council themselves) as a narrative of a "small vocal minority' and when that didn't dampen the voices against the measures the council's supporters leaned into the Tory/covid-denier/pertrolhead/fascist narrative. Still that didn't work.

It's a lazy tactic to try and demonise the opposition and one the left leans in on all the time. Sadiq did it during his people's question time - portray anyone who had a differing view as some nut-job fascist. Doing so is politically weak and actually demonstrates you lack a rational counter-argument to the points being raised and you're having to resort to childish name calling.

The challenge is sometimes, as we have seen in the US elections, it massively backfires and stokes the fires of populism and creates incredibly dangerous situations.

What astonishes me the most is, in relation to the years of discussion on this forum about these measures is how some, who support the council, will defend them to the death and turn a blind eye to things that if another political party was doing them they would be fighting against. There has been so much idealogical blindness by some that is empowers those in power to continue behaving appallingly.

Edited November 17 by Rockets

[Kathleen Olander]

The plants have gone in today, they look nice.  Lets hope Southwark Council maintain them better than they do the ones in Court Lane.

They will need watering in summer and pruning and weeding, good job there is plenty of money to spend on this junction.

There is also a water leak at the junction today, hope they don't have to dig it all up!

[ed_pete]

Anyone know why they've put breaks in the paving in ? Is it to take the run-off from the roads ?

[alice]

Slope for cyclists to take a shortcut

[march46]

18 hours ago, ed_pete said:

Anyone know why they've put breaks in the paving in ? Is it to take the run-off from the roads ?

It’s a Sustainable Drainage System (SuDS) in the form of a rain garden. Appeared to be working very well during the week when there was heavy rain overnight. 

[Rockets]

What a great idea that it is, very clever - a win/win!

I had wondered what they were when I saw them when they were first put in.

[ab29]

Hello concrete 🙂

[ab29]

On a second thought: is this what we get for millions of pounds spent on the area the size of my living room - and I live in a very small flat?

Five half-dead plants and the slabs from India?

After thousands and thousands of pounds already wasted on the consultations (including wasting precious paper (=trees) to produce the consultation leaflets - the outcome of which were then ignored by Southwark council, while the residents clearly said they do not want the LTNs - we are now told to lump it and waste even more money on the vanity square?

Edited November 30 by ab29

[Kathleen Olander]

2 hours ago, ab29 said:

On a second thought: is this what we get for millions of pounds spent on the area the size of my living room - and I live in a very small flat?

Five half-dead plants and the slabs from India?

After thousands and thousands of pounds already wasted on the consultations (including wasting precious paper (=trees) to produce the consultation leaflets - the outcome of which were then ignored by Southwark council, while the residents clearly said they do not want the LTNs - we are now told to lump it and waste even more money on the vanity square?

Don't forget the concrete heraldic shields on the pavement outside the shops, anyone know what they are about?

Is it to do with the "All's Well", motto of yore?

[Glemham]

The paving in front of the shops has been done and presumably paid for by the Dulwich Estate and the ‘shields’ are those of the Estate. There to remind us all of who holds sway over the ‘Manor’ of Dulwich and to whom many of us pay the annual ‘tithe’.

[Kathleen Olander]

The new pavement in Calton Avenue is slippery in the rain, I found that out today.

[ab29]

High time to reform Dulwich Estate!

[Kathleen Olander]

There is no clear definition of the areas for bikes and pedestrians.  As a result some cyclists are cycling all over the pedestrian bits and pedestrians keep wandering into the cyclist bits.  It's all the same bland colour.  Motorcycles/mopeds etc still keep riding through as well!