In June 1989 I wrote an article published in the Radio Times, entitled “Warming to the Problem”. It was based on an interview with the producers of a BBC2 documentary, one of the earliest (it was possibly even the first) on what was then referred to as the greenhouse effect. The introduction read: Our planet faces… Continue reading
Browsing Category Environment
Looking at Stonehenge road scheme with future generations in mind
In July (2023) the UK government gave its consent to a £1.7 bn scheme to dual the A303 across the Stonehenge World Heritage Site (WHS), with twin-bore tunnels, their portals well within the boundaries of the UNESCO-designated site. * * * * In 2020 a committee in Wales published detailed proposals for addressing traffic congestion, as an… Continue reading →
Brits love buses, but you’ll wait forever for one on the A303
Whose £2.5 billion tunnel and dual carriageway past Stonehenge is the A303 anyway? A public road (no tolls), funded by the public. Will it have that other ‘public’ thing? Public transport? After all, the A303 ‘improvements’ are designed to make life easier for motorists, all motorists. Car drivers, lorry and van drivers, even military vehicles –… Continue reading →
Pop star takes the train. Will the fans follow?
There is a famous image, taken in 1966, of Bob Dylan waiting for the Aust Ferry on the Severn Estuary, in the shadow of the still unfinished Severn Bridge. Dylan was already a big star – it was just after he switched to the acoustic guitar. Barry Feinstein photographed him during his tour of the… Continue reading →
Why does National Trust back damaging Stonehenge tunnel plan?
Suppose you had a problem on or around your property. A leaking roof, an awkward neighbour, a noisy road. And someone with clout, the council perhaps, came along and said it had a scheme – at no cost to you – to make life better. Considerably better. After checking that the few obvious snags… Continue reading →
Freiburg – city of the tram
Freiburg in Southern Germany, and the new city of Milton Keynes, 50 miles north of London, are about the same size – populations of 215,966, respectively, against 229,941 in 2022. But in terms of public transport they are worlds apart. Reduced to the essential detail of how people get about, MK, as it is widely… Continue reading →