Richard Baum

The Council’s Environmental Services Department are the local government equivalent of Manchester City - wonderful on their day, but all too often utterly woeful and seemingly incapable of the job they’re paid to do. Too often, over graffiti, road repairs and litter, their performance resembles the types of shambolic defeats that City receive every time they play away from home. Little in the way of commitment or rallying round a cause. But, on occasion, they perform the municipal version of a 6-0 win, and that’s happened this week regarding Dashwood Road.

There’ve been problems with the road which I’ve reported on before. Massive HGVs like to use it as an area to test their turning circles, which isn’t good news for householders whose cars keep getting bashed. We thought we could solve the problem by installing bollards, and although it took a while for the Council to emerge from its slumbers and install one, since then they’ve really been very good and installed more.

This week they installed a fifth, and it seems to be making a lot of difference. On top of that, their response times are now incredibly quick. HGVs still like to drive into the bollards, but last week a report of damage to one of them was made, and that damage was repaired in just three hours! That’s a five star service if you ask me.

Now we just need to do two things. Firstly convince the HGV drivers that residential streets aren’t part of their route. And second, get the rest of the Council to work as effectively and positively as the people involved with these bollards. But, I fear, that might be harder than teaching Manchester City to defend corners…

Rick