Woodland Trust planting

 I said I would send you some information on the ways in which we can support tree planting and in particular, the MoreWoods scheme which is available to farmers and the connected scheme, MoreHedges .  If you come across any farmers or landowners interested in creating woodland, then please do point them in our direction. https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/plant-trees/large-scale-planting .

Attenborough and Bennett sound off

Attenborough warned: “We are facing a global extinction crisis which has implications for every one of us. It’s tempting to assume that the loss of wildlife and wild places is a problem that’s happening on the other side of the world. The truth is that the UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries on the planet and the situation is getting worse.”

The Wildlife Trusts chief executive, Craig Bennett, said: “Just protecting the nature we have left is not enough; we need to put nature into recovery, and to do so at scale and with urgency.

“We need to transform nature-poor areas into new nature-rich places – and change the way we think about land, looking for opportunities to help nature outside traditional nature reserves.”

Incineration, landfill and zero waste

Thanks for the attachment that I have read.  The answer is more PV on our roofs to generate electricity for the place beneath.  And, storage batteries using resources going into e-bikes/scooters for people like me who could use our own energy to power the thing.  Is Gareth campaigning for PV instead?  And, for insulating every building to the maximum?

I don't like incineration or landfill one little bit.  But we all rely on someone dealing with our waste even if we do spend the minimum (reduce) and are zealous over composting, re-use, repair and recycling, as Linda and I are.  We have zero waste when it comes to food.

The more important waste problem is building and maintaining the Stourbridge principal mainline railway through the Black Country and Staffordshire up to Derby and then not fully using it for the purpose it was built for!!  Don't you think?!

Or, the waste of replacing buses on roads direct, with "buses on rails" on roads at the most colossal expense in the waste of resources and greenhouse gases emitted.  And, yet again, poor old Stourbridge gets left out!

The real problem is our lot.  We humans are the big problem, it seems to me.  I want zero waste but it is extremely difficult to achieve!

to CANWM

Dear Julian and Bob

You are two prominent members of CANWM.  Hence you get this!

This week on TV and social media, Andy Street is boasting that he has spent seven times more on transport than the same authorities did before his election four years ago.  By the end of his new term, if elected, it will be 15 times more, he claims!  This is because of the £15 BILLION going into 150 miles and 8 lines of Metro "bus on rails" trams to 2040 to replace buses and more trains.

The scandal is that for those of us who live in Dudley and parts of Sandwell and Brum, public transport is WORSE!  Eleven, Hagley Road bus routes are re-routed on a longer, slower diversion through narrow, traffic-choked streets in the rush hours and, constantly lined with parked cars.  Not even one of the eleven bus routes will ever again be able to use the fast, direct underpass beneath Five Ways but will be caught up in the traffic queues.  With four trams an hour in Broad Street, it may be impossible for any bus to now use that direct route as they all did, previously, before Metro madness.

Do the three of you accept this simple equation? :-

Spending = finite fossil fuels exhausted = greenhouse gases emitted = accelerates the runaway greenhouse effect = THE END

If you do, (obviously, with more renewable electricity being used, this will slow the exhaustion of our fossil fuel reserves but will have less of an impact if the runaway greenhouse effect has now taken off), do you feel able to join me in writing, phoning, messaging to all and sundry about this self-inflicted ecocide?

Metro madness has also led to the destruction of the UK's last, principal, mainline railway from Burton on Trent to Bristol via Brierley Hill (aka Derby to Devon via Dudley).  In 1999, Metro One led to the destruction of the railway and one and quarter railway stations on the now lost line from Snow Hill to Shrewsbury via Wolverhampton Low-Level station.  That former, principal railway station is now a conference and events centre!

The well-meaning fools in charge have now destroyed over 100 Kms of perfectly good railway lines in the W Midlands.  No wonder they are so desperate for HS2.  However, that will still mean the existing intercity trains being needed for the passengers to get off at the stations that HS2 goes too fast to be able to stop at!

All the best

Tim

PS  My Metro Mayor deposit now goes to DEC, UNICEF, MSF - instead of HMG.

Rebecca Solnit on Climate

" ... we must fight the climate crisis with the same urgency with which we confronted coronavirus. She says: "My hope for a post-pandemic world is that the old excuses for doing nothing about climate – that it is impossible to change the status quo and too expensive to do so – have been stripped away." This piece comes within weeks of us reporting that carbon dioxide emissions must fall by the equivalent of a global lockdown roughly every two years for the next decade for the world to keep within safe limits of global heating.

Two Scandals to get your teeth into!

Equality with elders like me for the poor discriminated young and middle-aged who are denied the regional Fare-Free Public Transport I have enjoyed for 13 years!

Stop destroying railways in the Black Country, only to build HS lines in Brum and Solihull on the E side that is already well endowed with railway lines, unlike the Black Country that has had them built on!

Chris Burden, Co-Chair, YCA - Vision document

"... this is the first time that young people have come together to produce a vision for our region in which we call on our leaders to be ambitious in delivering not only growth but a more radical change that reflects the urgency of our situations.

"But we, as young people and citizens of the West Midlands, deserve them to be done now. With each passing day of inaction, there is less of a future left to fight for." 

Why Metro and Sprint make everything worse!

I believe we have to prioritise fighting those projects that do the most damage to the  Climate, Ecological, Resource, Nature crises/emergency.  Those are the projects that cost the most money in finite resources exhausted and also make the most contribution to the runaway greenhouse effect.  My thinking is here:

Spending = finite fossil fuels burnt = greenhouse gases emitted = deepening climate emergency = THE END.

Therefore, the colossal expense in the expansion of Metro and Sprint both make the climate emergency, Nature crisis worse, as I have explained above and, public transport worse in Stourbridge and everyone from the West along Hagley Road.   My reasons for writing a worse public transport for Stourbridge are here:

1. Hundreds of millions of pounds of greenhouse gases are going to duplicate or replace buses and trains with Metro when what is needed are regular or normal commuter and regional trains on the principal, mainline railway from Stourbridge to Burton on Trent via Dudley, Walsall and Lichfield; and
2. existing buses, trains and trams simply need to be made fareless to end the discrimination against the young and middle-aged who, alone don't have fareless travel; and, 
3. electric buses on roads direct are greener, rather than Metro "bus on rails" trams going on railway lines on roads.
4. The railway lines on roads are made of steel that causes very large quantities of greenhouse gases to be emitted in the making of steel.
5. With Sprint coming, Stourbridge remains isolated from Brum city centre because it terminates at Halesowen.
6. With Metro coming, Stourbridge remains isolated from Dudley and Merry Hill because the tram stops at Cottage Street, Brierley Hill.
7. With the tram terminating at Edgbaston village tram stop on Hagley road, bus passengers from Stourbridge and the west have an additional delay to their journey because you either have to change for the tram or, have a longer journey by bus, all round the Wrekin via the Arena and narrow roads choked with traffic and parked cars!

Can Dudley Council leaders do better?

Something, below that brought not a single response from the genuine, proper politicians (like yourself).  They are awarded, however, 10 out of 10 for total apathy, outright acquiescence and, complete complacency - well done! :-

"To the 6 Metro Mayor candidates and 5 questions

 "Please could you tell me, YES or NO against the number, if you

1. think there should be a public inquiry into the W Mids Police gross misconduct in the tragic, farcical, inept mishandling of the Brum pub bombings in 1974.
2. Do you want commuter, regional and freight trains on the remaining 47 Kms of the ready-built "railway of national strategic significance" between Stourbridge, Walsall and Burton on Trent that doesn't get the isolated Metro trams on 6.7 Kms?
3. Should regional, Fare-Free Public Transport be extended from elders like me who are well past our prime, getting housebound and are quite wealthy enough, to be also given to the up and coming generations?
4. Before Tuesday, will you join me in emailing the Labour Party to ask for the immediate reinstatement of Cllr Yvonne Davies who remains the suspended Leader of Sandwell Council on a trumped-up charge of racism and antisemitism?
5. Before Tuesday, will you please send an email to Deborah Cadman, Chief Executive of the WMCA, to ask for the major 22 Kms Black Country Cycle-Walk Mudway to be the CA's top transport priority so that all can use it without wellies, walking boots or rough, tough mountain bikes or, using horses?

"Five 'Yes' or 'No' answers before Tuesday, please.  The results for the six of you will be announced during my 2 mins opening statement on Tuesday 30 March at 5.30pm."

Twitter to Paul Faulkner

 Don and Roy Richardson built my favourite shopping centre. However, they forgot to link the monorail with the 120 Kms Black Country Railway "of national strategic significance" for trains to Stourbridge/Worcs to the S and trains N to Dudley, Walsall and Derby! Can you help, please Paul? Tim

SPRINT DUPLICATES METRO!

Dear Paul - and copied to my other declared Metro Mayor candidates to put me right

"Sprint is a reliable, frequent, zero-emission bus
based rapid transit system offering the comfort,
look and feel of a modern tram or light rail system"

and,

"Sprint passenger fares will be priced in conjunction
with bus, whilst providing benefits more aligned
with tram"

('Transport Briefing: Sprint Delivery Programme, March 2021', page 1)

Therefore, why is £15 BILLION of greenhouse gas emissions being spent over the next 19 years to give us eight new tram lines over 150 miles and 380 tram stops?

Am I right in thinking that trains, buses, three different kinds of trams and, Sprint buses make for FOUR transport modes, with the tram made up of three sub-modes (light rail, very light rail and ultra-light rail)?

Does this multi-modal transport provision mean a multi-mixed up transport provision? 

Will this mean more confusion and congestion on both our remaining railway lines (the half used, half wasted, 120 Kms Black Country Railway "of national strategic significance") and, roads?

 "of national strategic significance".pdf

Will this mean more changes and delays as passengers attempt to make ONE public transport journey?

Can Fare-Free Public Transport (FFPT) be seen as a move for equality with elders and, ending discrimination against the young and middle-aged?

I would be glad of your guidance and opinion, please Paul.

Metro/Sprint simply duplicate and replace buses/trains to accelerate climate tragedy!

 Hi David

Thanks for writing.

You are absolutely and completely right and correct with every word, phrase, sentence and paragraph you have written!

Sprint was originally diesel buses but now electric.  It is planned for Halesowen (my town) but not Stourbridge, so no 9 buses will still be needed for that route, so duplicating Sprint!

 Sprint Delivery Programme March 2021.pdf

 Like for like comparison of infrastructure buil...

I've been raising the scandalous cost for very many years (since the 1990s) with very many politicians and officers.  Not a single one of them has expressed a whisper of concern or a raised eyebrow.  Andy Street came the nearest to expressing some concern, at one of his 'Ask Andy' meetings in West Bromwich in 2018 or 19, when he let me speak and I told him, quoting £75 m/Km for the Metro Westside extension to Morrisons, Five Ways.  But it made not a scrap of difference, of course.  The officers are in charge and the politicians (the vegetables and rubber stamps) do as they are told!

REMEMBER: Spending = finite fossil fuels burnt = greenhouse gases emitted = deepening climate catastrophe = THE END, ECOCIDE FOR ETERNITY (called eternal life)!

In 3 lines, the UK's longest-running, most amusing scandal in world transport history!!

In 2020, part of the UK's very last half-used but ready-built, principal mainline railway, near us was transferred to the W Mids Combined Authority for a Very Light Rail test track and two short sections of Light Rail tram line - and, proposal for an extended cycle-walkway!

National FoE's Climate Action Plan

 What can the mayor do for the planet?

We’re facing a climate emergency, the biggest threat we’ve ever seen to humanity’s existence. With extreme weather raging around the world, including flooding and extreme heat in the UK, acting on solutions in all our communities is essential.

How we build and manage our towns and cities is a crucial part of this, not only in actively reducing the climate impact of our transport and energy, but in showing national government where our priorities are, what can be done, and how we expect them to echo those nationally and internationally.

The Mayor of West Midlands has important powers they can use in ensuring the region is as climate and nature friendly as possible. The good news is, we have a plan for how they can achieve that.

We need the mayor to commit to:

1. Ensuring all infrastructure plans, programmes and investment decisions – including COVID-19 recovery plans – are in line with what’s needed to address the climate and ecological emergency, and in line with the region’s carbon budget and carbon reduction pathway.
2. Ensuring those impacted most by climate breakdown and nature loss are heard and centre-stage in decision-making.
3. Protecting workers and communities through a just transition from a fossil fuel-dependent economy to a low-carbon, nature-rich, circular economy, including delivering over 28,000 new jobs.
4. Introducing policies and measures that ensure new development is net zero carbon and existing homes are brought up to high energy-standards, and addressing fuel poverty.
5. At least doubling public transport use, cycling and walking within the next 10 years, to cut emissions and ensure everyone can breathe clean air.
6. Powering the region with clean, renewable energy, reaping the economic and job opportunities that this brings.
7. Greening the region by increasing tree cover, protecting nature, and eliminating green-space deprivation.
8. Becoming a zero-waste region by 2030 without relying on landfill or incineration, to reduce pressures on nature from resource extraction and pollution.
9. Calling on the local government pension scheme to divest from fossil fuels, to stop profiting from environmental harm.
10. Making the very best of the infrastructure we have, enact the Climate Emergency declarations, defend nature and introduce more inclusive governance.

Ask your mayor to build a fairer, greener future.

In 3 lines, the UK's longest-running, most amusing scandal in world transport history!!

In 2020, part of the UK's very last half-used but ready-built, principal mainline railway, near us was transferred to the W Mids Combined Authority for a Very Light Rail test track and two short sections of Light Rail tram line - and, proposal for an extended cycle-walkway!!

Twitter to Ashvir

Will they be ELECTRIC extreme E-racing cars, Ashvir? "To manufacture an EV battery you need as many as 20 minerals, including cobalt, lithium and nickel as well as other rare earth metals" To raise awareness of climate disaster or resource depletion or both?

"To manufacture an EV battery you need as many as 20 minerals, including cobalt, lithium and nickel as well as other rare earth metals. According to Andrew Bloodworth from the British Geological Survey, there's enough 'metal in the crust' to support the battery industry globally.

"But from a UK standpoint much of the resources are inconveniently located, and there are other political and non-geographical factors that can hamper production and squeeze supply chains, which are tightly controlled by China. ‘China is a metals superpower’, he told Air Quality News.  ‘They produce a lot and import a lot and are a very powerful force.’

"The UK has been an automotive powerhouse for decades, but with the advent of EVs, they now are facing a lot more competition for resources. Jaguar Land Rover has plans to build EV batteries in Wolverhampton, but other companies such as Honda, have mothballed UK plants and have decided to build their EVs on the continent or in Asia."

https://airqualitynews.com/2020/05/18/the-politics-of-making-an-

electric-vehicle-battery/#:~:text=To%20manufacture%20an%20EV%

20battery,support%20the%20battery%20industry%20globally.

Questions for TfWM

24 March 2021

Dear Paul

Thanks for your last email.

 

While I remain a declared candidate, could you please ask Mike Waters to put in writing what he was saying last week about Tallinn operating FFPT for every passenger being completely different from the position we find ourselves in, here in the W Midlands.  I need to hear again - and consider - the points he was making, please.

 

Could you please ask Shingadia to give me the average distance between each bus stop on the Sprint route and the average distance for the regular bus services on that same route.  Plus frequency of the two services on that Walsall to Brum to Solihull route.

 

Does this mean that some passengers will have to walk further from home and will need to examine the route to find which of the two different buses they should walk to, to find the best bus for them?

 

Is it simpler and cheaper to keep to the regular buses but to gradually make them as great, glitzy and glamorous as Sprint buses?

 

How do you decide when to upgrade bus routes to a Metro "bus on rails" tram and when to upgrade to Sprint?

 

Could the money, instead go to fund the proposed regional FFPT extension to the remainder of the population?

 

Can you use CAZ money to fund FFPT?

Would FFPT provide better value for money than Sprint?

Does Sprint make for a two-level, two-class bus provision?

 

Does the rolling out of Ultra Light Rail (Pre Metro Operations), Very Light Rail and Light Rail Metro, complicate the public transport journey with more changes, leading to more delays, between the different modes?

 

It seems that the Covid, Climate, Ecological, Nature crisis is here to stay into the foreseeable future.  Therefore, do Mike, Shingadia and Adam think that anything should change in the light of those realities and, of serious shortages of oil and all kinds of gas by the end of the century?

 

Do the three men accept my thought, here?:

It is the business of all of us to curtail our activities to minimise finite fossil fuel use and the resulting, deadly greenhouse gas emissions.  It isn't fair to live it up today when we know there will be shortages tomorrow AND a most uncomfortable existence from climate breakdown. 

 

Do they accept my conclusion?:

Spending = more greenhouse gas emissions = deepening climate crisis = THE END.

 

Could you please ask the two Co-Chairs of the YCA, what actions they are suggesting when they wrote (actually Chris Burden in the Afterword of their 'Community Recovery Prospectus'):

"... we call on our leaders to be ambitious in delivering not only growth but a more radical change that reflects the urgency of our situations."  What radical change exactly?

and,

"With each passing day of inaction, there is less of a future left to fight for."   What action does YCA want, specifically?

 

Many thanks, Paul

BEN GOLDSMITH says:

 “Man worships an invisible God and destroys a visible Nature; unaware that this Nature he’s destroying is this God he’s worshiping.” Hubert Reeves

Twitter to Steve Caudwell

 Promote voluntary fuel rationing to cut greenhouse gas emissions and follow my 50% cut to an absolute maximum of 7,000 miles/year. And Fare-Free Public Transport as your PRIZE for deserting the car. And muscle power bike first!

MY TOP 3 PRIORITIES FOR METRO MAYOR

 Truly addressing the Covid/Climate/Nature emergency by slowing the rise in greenhouse gases by:

1. building affordable homes and adapting all housing to meet Passivhaus standard of energy efficiency to meet a maximum of 5 units of electricity/day.
2. training the workforce and new entrants for jobs to meet this rigorous standard as soon as possible.
3. extending the present regional fare-free public transport for elders to the younger age groups for reasons of fairness, as compensation for the slightly higher risk of getting Covid and, as a reward for leaving their cars at home as much as possible.

Metro blunder at Five Ways and Broad Street

The Green Party 2017 Metro Mayor election manifesto also supported the grossly extravagant, greenhouse gas-emitting in abundance, Metro tram extensions to either replace buses and trains or, to add to the mix of multi-modal public transport to make for more changes and delays as you go from one to the other over three instead of two transport modes.  

The best example is what we now see for our 9 buses that cannot use the Five Ways underpass anymore and, along with the other ten bus routes, has a slow diversion on narrow roads, jammed with parked cars via the Arena, instead of the former direct route through the underpass and along Broad Street.  (Some bus routes MAY be able to return to Broad St but, priority will always be given to the tram, of course.)

Or, if you get off the bus before Five Ways, you might then have to wait up to 15 mins for the tram to enable you to continue your journey into the city centre.  This is not progress.  It does not encourage motorists to leave their cars at home and use public transport.  Or, does it?  Why are you, personally so much in favour of the £15 billion to 2040 for mainly 150 miles, 380 tram stops and 8 lines of underground and overground tram extensions, please?