September 2019

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5 Buckden Roundabout
September 2019 From Your Councillors
FROM YOUR DISTRICT COUNCILLOR
Over the past month we have had every sort of weather; sun,
hail, and last week very strong winds, which nearly blew over
a brick wall on the pathway near NISA. It took a bit of time to
organize a response and during that time two nearby resi-
dents stood guard at either end of the alley to make sure chil-
dren did not bike through. Credit where credit is due and
those that helped did a super job. The 101 service were very
helpful as well and diverted the police to assist.
It’s at times like these that we realize just how lucky we are.
Boris Johnson has promised us 20,000 more police, but it
takes up to two years to train a policeman including proba-
tionary time. This then drives home the noted significance of
Cambridgeshire’s Police commissioner, Jason Ablewhite, for
recruiting 200 new officers 2 years earlier, the majority of
whom are either during their training or have completed it.
This will make a welcome difference both in Cambridgeshire
and Buckden but sadly there will still be gaps; cattle on the
road, local traffic gridlocks, road rage and other pertinent is-
sues may not receive the attention we believe they deserve.
Some communities in Fenland are starting to use security con-
tractors and Peterborough held a trial of community policing
partly funded by revenue sharing from fines issues by the con-
tractor. This is not a model I agree with given the way traffic
violations are handed out in our big cities to boost revenue.
That said, we need to start thinking about what Buckden
wants and needs in the future. Will we follow the route of
more cameras and face recognition systems? Maybe sharing
an additional PCSO and extending supervision to Brampton or
Perry. The coming launch of the Neighborhood Plan by Buck-
den Parish council provides an opportunity to comment and
think about this kind of issue. There are many possible op-
tions, but when the question “What do you want” is asked, we
need to be able to give a consensus view. Given the current
political situation, the question may get asked sooner than we
think.
Hamish Masson, Councillor HDC Buckden Ward
(Hamish.Masson@Huntingdonshire.gov.uk)
FROM YOUR COUNTY COUNCILLOR
It was interesting to see the article in the August magazine,
page 7, about why traffic lights at the Buckden roundabout
would probably not work, given the size of the vehicles that
use it and the configuration of the roundabout.
I have been mulling over an idea for some time and have been
hoping to present it for wider discussion at the A1 Safety Advi-
sory Group which, alas, has not been convened for some time.
The main problem is that vehicles wishing to get out of the
High Street cannot easily do so because of the flow of heavy
vehicles coming south down the A1. It is difficult and potential-
ly dangerous because, not only is the traffic flow very heavy,
the angle of the road layout makes it difficult for the Buckden
High Street driver to see what is coming.
My tentative idea is that we basically need to find a way of
interrupting the A1 south flow temporarily to allow local traffic
to emerge safely. I wonder therefore if a part-time traffic light
could be located, on the southbound A1 only, about 40 yards
from the roundabout and turn red, say, every 3 minutes for
about 30 seconds. This would create a gap for local vehicles to
emerge safely. This expedient might only be necessary at the
rush hours peaks, say, between 8 and 10 in the morning and 4
and 6 in the evening.
The above indicative figures of ‘3 minutes’ and ‘30 seconds’ are
pure guesswork on my part and would need to be modified in
the light of experience.
I have no idea if Highways regulations allow this but if they do,
it might be worth trying. It would certainly be a lot less expen-
sive than installing lights all round the roundabout. Movable
traffic lights now exist which can be individually programmed,
as I know from personal experience in Brampton over the last
few months.
The prospect of re-routing the A1 entirely, a pipe-dream for as
long as I can remember, seems to be less and less likely as na-
tional austerity persists and as the current Prime Minister is
keen to improve funding for schools, increase the number of
police officers, build more prisons, protect social care for the
elderly and reduce tax for the wealthiest members of society,
the possibility of a massive re-building programme for Buckden
seems small.
On a different aspect of getting around – cycling. Buckden resi-
dents who cycle to Huntingdon via Brampton will be pleased
to know that we seem to be making some progress in improv-
ing the cycle track. The parish councils of Brampton and Buck-
den hope to find a way of working together to make this hap-
pen and it is a project that might come into reality rather
quicker than re-routing the A1!!
If you wish to raise any local matters with me personally and
would welcome a face-to-face conversation, I come to the par-
ish council meeting, the 2nd Tuesday in the month. At other
times, please ring me on 07765 833 486 or write to me at pe-
ter.downes@cambridgeshire.gov.uk.
Buckden Friends
We would like to invite everyone to join us for a FUN QUIZ to
raise some funds for Buckden Pre-school play group on Thurs-
day 5th September at 7pm in the Lounge at Buckden Marina .
£11 entry (pay on the day) will include a supper of either Shep-
herds Pie or Mediterranean Wellington (v). Quiz teams made
up on the night so everyone welcome.
There will, of course, be a Raffle. Emphasis on FUN.
Please book so we know how many to feed. 01480 810355 or
contact me Pat King 01480811020, 32 Mayfield Buckden pat-
king@writeme.com
We are off to Blackpool next May. Why not join us. Do contact
me for details...Again all welcome.