Letters to the Editor

SIR, - The residents, as far as I know, have no feeling of propriety over any local roads, as suggested by Councillor Robinson in your council meeting report, but do have a right, unashamedly, to expect that councillors and other authorities will take measures to uphold the law of the land on their behalf.

They would like the children and the elderly of this town to be able to walk in safety, and would like all other road users and pedestrians to have the assurance that the speed limit is being enforced and respected.

This is something that authorities have signally failed to ensure over a period of many years, and is why the Ilkley Community Against Speeding (ICAS) was formed in the first place.

Three of the four gentlemen who complain about the proposed traffic calming for Bolling Road/Springs Lane live happily tucked away in cul-de-sacs and cannot possibly understand the daily difficulties endured by the residents of these roads or others in the town with similar speeding problems.

Nor can those who do not walk by these roads appreciate the fear engendered by vehicles which hurtle past at speeds of 40, 50 and 60mph, graphically expressed in recent Gazette correspondent Joan Button.

In the last three accidents that I have seen, the vehicle concerned has crashed on to and over the pavement. There have been many such accidents. The potential for hazard is enormous, especially with a greatly increased number of children expected at the Grammar School from September.

Mr Robin Wright tells me that his car will travel over the 'humps', as he wrongly describes them (they are to be speed tables), 7,000 times a year.

If we must bandy figures, during that time there will have been more than 2,000,000 vehicles along this road, and if the current situation is not improved, almost two-thirds of them will be exceeding the speed limit. Incidentally, I hope he didn't mean to imply that the state of his car's suspension was more important to him than the risk to life and limb that speeding poses.

However, he can take comfort, as can Coun Robinson, from the policy report published by the DETR in 2000. "Road humps, chicanes and other road engineering measures remain the most effective method of reducing vehicle speeds in urban areas.

"They can reduce average speeds typically by ten miles and hour and are particularly effective at reducing child pedestrian casualties.

"Schemes can be designed to encourage a smooth driving style to limit noise and emissions. There is no evidence that when negotiated at sensible speeds these cause damage to vehicles."

Now, at last we have some positive action to deter speeding , can you wonder that the majority of people are hopeful that it will be successful.

It should be remembered that ICAS has already tried several softer options in the form of car stickers, silent demonstrations and wheelie bin stickers, letters asking for help to our MP, letters to councillors, letters to the press, letters asking for 30mph signs, help from hackney carriage authorities, request to the police for speed checks and help from the highways authority to resolve this perennial problem.

Let us have confidence now in these current proposals. I think that once the 'calming' is in place and drivers moderate heir speeds, the benefits will be appreciated by the whole community.

Finally, of course, if everybody drover considerately, within the permitted limit, none of this would be necessary.....

BARBARA DAVY

The Willows,

Parklands,

Ilkley.

Safety paramount

SIR, - I write to agree with Joanne Button in her letter last week to the Gazette regarding the traffic calming measures on Bolling Road. It seems that those who actually live on Bolling Road are far more aware of the speed of traffic and the problems it causes than people who live in other areas of Ben Rhydding but only drive along this road.

I have walked along Bolling Road for the past ten years taking my children to and from playgroup and school and have noticed a considerable increase in the speed and volume of the traffic.

As parents we are being encouraged to allow our children to walk rather than being driven to and from school in cars. I am in favour of this and want my children to be able to walk and cycle safely and independently along this road. With some drivers travelling at speeds in excess of 50mph this is not possible.

With reference to David Walker's comments, the police do operate speed guns along Bolling Road from time to time but this does not seem to deter the offenders.

Those who have witnessed accidents involving pedestrians who have been hit by a vehicle (and not necessarily a speeding one) will no doubt endorse the trauma caused to all those involved. Surely it is time to make our streets safer for all road users young and old alike rather than only consider the convenience of motorists who simply want to drive quickly into and out of Ilkley.

I am sure I speak for many parents who walk along busy roads with their children when I say that I would rather put up the minor inconvenience of the speed tables in return for the safety of our children and others who need to be allowed to cross the roads in Ilkley unharmed.

Stephanie Morris

Ilkley.

Curbs backed

SIR, - As a long-standing resident of Bolling Road, I would like to make clear my firm support for the proposals detailed in the plan 11/23618/CON-4A.

It appears that several of the objectors to the proposals use Bolling Road but do not live on it and therefore do not see or hear the crashes, injuries, damage and 'near-misses' which occur regularly.

Pedestrians, drivers and pets have been hurt and killed in the immediate vicinity of my home and I am happy that the changes will slow down all vehicles and increase the safety of every road user.

If the objectors really feel that people's safety is less important than the springs in their cars, then I feel sorry for them. The views of the people who live in the 'rat-run' at present must carry more weight than those of the people who pass through momentarily.

If the proposals do cause other roads to be used as 'rat-runs' then traffic calming measures must be applied to those areas as well.

JOSE BUSWORTH

94 Bolling Road,

Ilkley.

Saddam misread

SIR, - When we condemn Saddam Hussein as a wicked unelected dictator, we are completely misreading the way things work.

Democracy and elections are weird and wonderful ways of choosing leaders and the results are not very encouraging. Democracy can only work if there is a stable majority.

This is impossible in diverse countries like Iraq and the USSR. Saddam Hussein is the leader of the Iraqi pack, accepted by them as their brightest and best in the same way as packs of wolves or wild dogs choose their dominant male or female.

Democratic leaders are fearful of such leaders because they have been educated to believe that only elected leaders are legitimate. Like religion, they fear any heresy as a danger that must be wiped out.

As a result, countries like Iraq, and possibly Cuba are under such external pressure that it is impossible for them to be happy places. Given a fair chance they would be very stable and happy places.

It would be very interesting to know if old ladies are in less danger in the streets of Baghdad than those in London.

Looked at from the standpoint of evolution, Saddam Hussein's ancestors must have survived an extremely rigorous series of selections, and he is their culmination.

W H BOOCOCK

17 Wheatley Lane,

Ilkley.

Letters negative

SIR, - Since moving to Ilkley from my native Sri Lanka a year ago, I have enjoyed reading your newspaper as I like to take an interest in the local issues which affect us all.

I thought I would write in to express my sadness that many of the letters you receive seem to be of a negative nature, regarding the town. I have to say that I find Ilkley to be a very charming town with so many benefits to its residents.

Many letters talk about a lack of facilities for younger people. This town is blessed with fields to play sport and to have the moors on the edge of the town is something many people would love to have. It is also fair to say that Ilkley is one of the few towns where you can walk around at night without having to be too worried about safety.

It seems many people in this town instead prefer to focus on the minor and unimportant features of the town. I believe that all Ilkley residents should be all united in our efforts to make the August festivities as great a success as possible in order to show to other towns the delights of Ilkley and surrounding areas.

Hashan Tillerkeratne

Nelson Road,

Ilkley

Ducks threatened

SIR, - Many readers will have heard that thousands of ruddy ducks are to be shot under a Government order because some are flying to Spain and allegedly mating with the endangered white headed duck, creating a 'genetically

impure' hybrid. Because of this the ruddy duck is being blamed for the reduction of 'pure' white-headed ducks, which are endangered due to humans hunting them to near extinction and destroying their habitat.

Thousands of ruddy ducks have already been killed in a so-called 'trial cull', many on their nests. Incredibly this was engineered by the RSPB who refuse to tolerate the hybrid birds resulting from the two species of duck mating.

This is absurd, obscene and abhorrent. However, thanks to the public outcry, harnessed by Animal Aid's campaign, the Government has recently issued a statement in which it recognises the need to look at alternative methods of population control other than mass slaughter.

However, the ducks are not safe yet. We must ensure that the Government does not return to the original mass slaughter once the media spotlight is off them. We urge all readers to withdraw their support for the RSPB until they stop pressing for the destruction of these birds.

If you are a member, please consider cancelling your membership and let them know why. If you have pledged a legacy to the RSPB please think again. The RSPB should live up to its name and PROTECT from, not support, the massacre of birds.

Ajaye Curry

Campaigns Officer,

Animal Aid.

Dropped 'aitches'

SIR, - My postcode is LS29 9RH and it is becoming more the norm that when it is repeated back, the other party will pronounce the final letter as 'haitch'.

May I please inform those guilty of this offence against the English language, that that letter is not aspirated and is pronounced 'aitch'.

Those who are in any doubt on that score may refer to the Oxford English Dictionary, which will confirm my spelling and pronunciation.

ERNEST GARDNER

4 Warlbeck,

King's Road,

Ilkley.

Plea to readers

SIR, - I would like to hear from older readers, aged 70 plus, who found true love outside their marriage, for a Channel Four history documentary.

During the first half of the century many married hastily and soon discovered they had nothing in common with their partners. To escape from the loneliness of an unhappy marriage, some were drawn into secret affairs, and a few lucky ones found the love of their life. However, this was an era of narrow sexual attitudes when it was difficult or impossible to get a divorce. As a result the lovers had to suffer much heartache and humiliation before they could be together.

If you found love outside marriage in your younger days, please write to me at the address below.

STEVE HUMPHRIES

Testimony Films,

12 Great george Street,

Bristol BS1 5RS.

Plea for old picture of excursion

SIR, - Yeadon, albeit being the home of an airport internationally, is never likely to feature dramatically in any history of the railway.

It's station opened on February 9, 1894, and thereafter, during 77 years of its existence, business was confined to irregular light goods traffic and occasional passenger 'specials'. These were these being operated notably at the town's August 'feast' week, when workers from the local textile mills availed themselves of the opportunity to entrain direct to Blackpool or, less frequently, Morecambe, for their one week's annual holiday: such excursions becoming known popularly as 'ghost trains' of which I am keen to obtain a photograph? Can anyone help me?

Gerald Myers

6 Moorway

Tranmere Park

Guiseley.