THE current roadworks in the centre of Milnsbridge have sparked an interesting but ultimately pointless debate about historic and present traffic congestion.
The debate that should be taking place is about the future movement of people and goods within and through the village.
It is self evident that for many years the de-industrialisation of Milnsbridge has been gathering pace, as a result of global, rather than local, trends and decisions.
At the same time, Milnsbridge has become much more a residential community as redundant mills have been converted to apartments or demolished to make way for residential development.
As local employment has declined, much increased car ownership since the 1960s has facilitated a more dispersed pattern of travel to work.
The geography of Milnsbridge, with its single usable river crossing, is a major cause of congestion within the centre, and beyond that, Huddersfield bound traffic has to endure further congestion and delays at Longroyd Bridge and Paddock Foot.
Kirklees Council is a ready scapegoat for everything that is wrong with the road network, but in reality it is all of us who cause congestion by the lifestyle choices we make or have imposed on us.
What is abundantly clear is that congestion and delays will get worse as more houses and flats are built in and around Milnsbridge and the Colne Valley, and that the present major road works in Milnsbridge will not be the last.
The bus is no alternative, as buses are subject to the same delays and do not have the advantage of inbound bus lanes. For me there are two blindingly obvious measures that could provide alternative, largely traffic free routes to Huddersfield.
The canal towpath should be reconstructed as a high quality all weather surface, with lighting, for cyclists and pedestrians, with a similar treatment for the parallel riverside path.
With the co-operation of the Waterways Trust, this could be achieved quickly.
I and others have previously advocated a railway station for Milnsbridge.
This would be costly and subject to a lengthy process of feasibility and approval, but I have no doubt that a very strong case can be made and that it would be well used, given a travel time to Huddersfield of around five minutes.
If national and local policies of managing the growth of road traffic, reducing accidents, reducing greenhouse gases and promoting good health are to mean anything, then these measures should be given immediate and serious consideration.
It is unfortunate that a new station for Milnsbridge does not appear in the current LDF consultation documents despite references to the importance of the TransPennine rail link and infrastructure and service improvements elsewhere on the route.
Bill Hunter
Honley
Life’s mysteries
WHY aren’t benefits taxed? I’ve never understood this.
Take the Latvian woman who reportedly receives just over £34,000 a year. I earned a similar sum when I retired two years ago. I paid tax on it every month, why doesn’t she?
Now on more light-hearted (but nevertheless annoying) points.
Why do people who are queuing up at a cash point insist on doing so at 90 degrees to the building, thus creating a human wall across the pavement, which is almost impossible to breech?
Then when you try to get through, they look at you as if you’ve no right to be there.
Why, when paying at a supermarket till, do people insist on packing away every last item and only then start to rummage for their purse and then their cards?
They then stand there doing nothing while their transaction is processed. Added up through the day, a lot of time must be wasted.
Puzzled
Housing is the answer
IT was good news to hear that student flats are planned for the former Thatchers furniture store in Huddersfield.
The location is superb for more car owning students. It is also right next to the bus station and Sainsbury’s, and only a short walk from the university and train station.
What are the alternatives? The building is no longer suitable for modern retail use.
One popular alternative is to leave a “For Sale” long enough for the building to take on a forlorn and dejected appearance, such that the “For Sale” may as well be replaced with “Pipe and wire thieves welcome”.
After they’ve been and gone, the drug addicts kick away the plywood seals to the forced entry points, and turn the building into an unorthodox community drop-in centre.
As a grand finale the building goes up in flames, with the fire brigade, duty bound, at great risk to life and limb and cost to the tax payer, have to save enough of it for a repeat performance.
Eventually, the burnt out shell is converted into dwellings in any case.
I, like many others, was shocked to hear that the Fly Boat pub may become student flats, but if nobody will take it on as a pub, what are the alternatives?
Just around the corner, the abandoned Sea Cadets HQ was fortunately demolished and removed before bonfire night came early.
Storthes Hall Hospital was redeveloped into student flats soon enough to prevent all this.
I wish I could say the same about the now empty St Luke’s hospital.
There is a case for nearly all redundant buildings, around the town centre to be converted into houses, aimed at those with no young children or pets, who want to avoid the ever increasing cost of car ownership.
Car tax and insurance alone, is enough for two holidays in the sun, and all the rest of it buys many restaurant meals, flat screen TVs, computers and the like.
Reduced heating bills, in multi-occupied buildings, provides even more spending power.
The conversion to flats, of buildings which couldn’t, but didn’t need to provide parking spaces, took off in central London in the 90s.
Flats in a converted office block, visible to commuters pulling out of Waterloo Station, sold like hot cakes when, instead of “For Sale” signs, the whole building was emblazoned with one big sign “Right now you’d be home if you lived here”.
Hopefully, plans to breathe new life into our town centre will soon be forthcoming. Government grants are available in some cases.
This will create many local jobs, in that much conversion work can be carried out adequately in the winter months.
Clearly, some “no hope” buildings will have to be replaced with new build, and hopefully, the whole swathe of empty buildings, along St John’s Road, for example, will soon be re-developed.
I can only add, with near certainty, if our town centre continues its decline into a ghost town, while our cherished green spaces are built upon, there will be very many people demanding more than just a polite, but evasive, mind your own business type of explanation.
STEPHEN PRIEST
Kings Mill Lane
Defending badgers RUN badger, run, run, run.
Don’t let the farmer have his fun, fun, fun.
He’ll get by without his badger pie,
So run badger, run, run, run.
Bang, bang, bang, goes the farmer’s gun,
So run badger, run, run, run.
Farmers are being issued with a licence to cull badgers by 70% of their population. Nobody knows how many there are so 70% of an unknown could end up exterminating.
These beautiful animals blamed for spreading bovine flu in cattle deserve to live their lives in freedom.
ANIMAL LOVER
Honley
Conductor wanted
HUDDERSFIELD has a long tradition of brass music making which engages local people of all ages in an important aspect of community activity.
Quite rightly, much attention is given to young players who are essential to the continuation of this tradition. However, at the opposite end of the age range, there are many older players who also make a contribution.
Vintage Brass, a band based in the Colne Valley, but drawing members from the wider Huddersfield area, specifically encourages those of somewhat older years to carry on blowing.
Vintage doesn’t compete or march but seeks to provide local organisations of all kinds with appropriate and enjoyable music for concerts, festivals and other events.
We have been successful in building up a body of players in their 50s and over and new members are always welcome.
However, we are finding it difficult to recruit an enthusiastic conductor/musical director (age irrelevant) who shares the aims of the band.
Perhaps Examiner readers can help. It’s said that you don’t stop blowing because you grow old but that you grow old if you stop blowing (or drumming).
So if you can help us or know someone who would like to take up the baton for a group of enthusiastic “mature” players, please get in touch. My address is 46 Upper Wellhouse, Golcar, HD7 4EU.
JOHN CAWOOD
Secretary Vintage Brass
