Hi Mark,

 

The first (emboldened & highlighted) item below may be just what you need to get some action from the council to get rid of “that tree”

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Yannick Read [mailto:yannick.read@...]
Sent: 01 February 2007 17:09
To: Yannick Read
Subject: CTC newsnet 2.2.07

 

newsnet 02.02.07

The weekly newsletter for members of CTC

 

 

News

 

Fill that hole in one

We knew there was a need for a simple online reporting tool to help get road faults fixed and trails cleared, but we’ve been bowled over by the level of response to our recently-launched websites www.fillthathole.org.uk and www.clearthattrail.org.uk. We’ve had over 700 reports of potholes and the like in less than a week, and we’re duly sending them on to the local authorities responsible for getting them fixed. The sites are beginning to generate positive interest in the media; Thursday’s Guardian newspaper said “CTC has just launched an online service which is just peachy to use. Try it and, I promise, you'll soon be going out of your way just to find holes.”

 

Driver who killed Zak Carr gets fraction of maximum sentence

A Norwich publican who killed top UK cyclist Zak Carr when his car ran into the back of his bicycle has been found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving and sentenced to 5 years imprisonment. At the time of the crash, Donald Pearce was driving home from the airport having not slept since leaving Turkey the previous day, and it is thought he fell asleep at the wheel. Mr Carr, 30, was cycling to work along the A11 near Wymondham when the crash happened on 17 October 2005. CTC’s Roger Geffen said: “Despite the new Road Safety Act 2006, the sentencing framework for bad driving offences is still riddled with inconsistencies. If the driver had done exactly the same thing but by chance Zak Carr had ‘merely’ been maimed rather than killed, then the maximum sentence the judge could have given him would have been just 2 years. So it’s hardly surprising that judges never seem to go anywhere near the maximum of 14 years open to them in cases such as this where someone really is killed. The Government must sort out these anomalies if sentences for dangerous drivers are to reflect the gravity of threatening other road users’ lives.”

 

Cycle Show moves to Earls Court

The Cycle Show has been at London’s Excel for the last couple of years, and whilst the venue is every inch the modern exhibition centre it was a trek to get to – even if you lived in London itself. The show’s move later this year to Earls Court, as reported by bikebiz.com, will not only make it easier for visitors from outside the capital and larger numbers of Londoners to get to the show, but offers more than twice as much exhibition space as Excel.

 

14,000 free bikes for Paris

Outdoor advertising firm JCDecaux is to supply Paris with bikes for a new and free city-wide bicycle hire service, reports bikeforall.net. The company already operates Cyclocity pay-per-ride cycle hire schemes in Lyon and Brussels. The contract with Paris City Hall will see JCDecaux establish a free bicycle hire service with 14,100 bikes in place by the summer. The Paris bid for the 2012 Olympics included a proposal for 100,000 pool bikes of this sort – it would be nice to think that our own Olympic committee had taken note of the idea.

 

Ferry good news

LT Ferries, that operates the Portsmouth to Le Havre service, will from March be running a Newhaven to Le Havre service. It will operate under the Transmanche name. More

 

What’s on?

 

CTC mountain bike training 2007

If you’re looking to make the most of your mountain bike this summer, why not brush up on your skills? The first three of six mountain bike training weekends for beginners planned for 2007 are now open for booking. The first weekend takes place from Friday 11th – Sunday 13th May and the second from Friday 1st – Sunday 3rd June on the Avon Tyrrell estate in the New Forest. The estate boasts its own mountain bike training area and trails along with good food and comfortable accommodation. The third weekend takes place Friday 29th June – Sunday 1st July at Holmbury in the Surrey Hills; an area boasting some of the best mountain bike trails in the Southeast. To find out more and download a booking form visit www.ctc.org.uk/mtb and follow the links the Mountain Bike Skills Weekends. Alternatively email ian.warby@...

 

Can you spare five?

A big thank you to all of you (almost 1000) who’ve completed our online Climate Change questionnaire over the last 2 weeks. If you have not done so already, please spare 5 minutes to get involved. As you may already know, we’re working with the Government to communicate the positive image of cycling as a way of raising awareness about climate change issues. In order to measure our impact we need to get cyclists’ feedback before and after our campaign. Please complete the on-line questionnaire - not only will you be helping our campaign, but you get a chance to win a £100 CTC Shop voucher. www.ctcsurvey.co.uk

 

Quick release TV

quickreleasetv  is a brand new site featuring video and audio cycling-related podcasts.

Upload your own contribution or become a reviewer of films posted on the site

 

In your area…

The CTC online events page is regularly updated. Find cycling events in your area here

 

Products

 

Bike in a bag

The CTC bike bag offers a simple and basic solution for preparing a bicycle for transportation. It’s accepted by most airlines and several express coach operators and at £3.60 it’s not going to break the bank.

 

Remember that profits from everything you buy from our shop help support the campaigning work we do. Plus, most items that aren’t already on sale are reduced by 10%. The shop can be found at www.ctcshop.com or feel free to give us a call on 0870 873 0069

 

CTC Campaigns

 

In the news

Following the report in The Times last month that nearly 2.2million owners last year failed to pay vehicle excise duty (VED), the paper this week reports that motorists who fail to renew their car insurance will receive automatic £100 fines. Uninsured drivers are three times as likely as insured drivers to have been convicted of driving without due car and attention. Also this week, the DfT announced that in order to counter accusations of profiteering, police and local authority camera partnerships will no longer directly receive revenue from speed cameras. From April they will receive a fixed amount to pay for a variety of road safety measures, not just cameras.

 

Member benefit

 

The CTC credit card can save you money and helps raise valuable funds for CTC’s campaigning and cycling development work - all at no extra cost to you. Benefits include 0% p.a. on balance transfers guaranteed for 6 months, no annual fee, 15.9% APR (variable) and up to 59 days free credit on purchases. Phone 0800 776262 and quote ref. MOH5 to request an application form.

 

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