Road closures in Winterbourne

You might want to avoid driving through Winterbourne in the evening and overnight for the next week.

From 31st August - 7th September, road resurfacing will take place in Flaxpits Lane, Dragon Road and Beacon Lane. The work will be done between roughly 8pm and 6am. From 31st to 2nd, Flaxpits Lane and Dragon Road will be closed to through traffic overnight with diversions in place. When the work moves to Beacon Lane there will be temporary traffic lights.

All times and dates are subject to change due to bad weather or other problems. Access to properties and amenities fronting the site will be available at all times and every effort will be made to keep the disruption to local residents to a minimum for the duration of the works.

First Bus raise fares

On Sunday, First Bus increased the price of adult and children, single and return tickets between 5p and 20p depending on the length of the journey. They have also introduced three new season tickets and are reducing prices for a limited period on some of the existing ones.
 
More information on the First Bus website.

New police non-emergency number - 101 coming soon

From 19th September you will be able to contact Avon and Somerset Police by calling them on 101.

Part of a national programme to make it easier for you to contact your local police, 101 will be used for non-emergencies such as:

• reporting a crime
• contacting local officers
• getting crime prevention advice
• making us aware of policing issues in your local area
• making an appointment with a police officer
• for any other non-emergency

Key Facts

101 will not replace 999, which will continue to be used for emergencies.
It will replace the existing 0845 number, although there will be a period when both numbers will be available.
If you are deaf, hard of hearing or speech impaired, you can textphone the police on 18001 101
Calls to 101 from landlines and mobiles cost 15 pence per call, no matter what time of day you call or how long your call lasts.
International callers, those in the UK residing outside of England and Wales and those residing in local force areas currently awaiting access to 101 should call 0845 456 7000 to contact Avon and Somerset Police.

Remember...

999 should be used for an emergency, when a crime is happening, someone suspected of a crime is nearby, someone is injured, being threatened or in danger.

For more information about 101, please take a look at the police Frequently Asked Questions

Bus stop in Chipping Sodbury High Street to be moved?

Local people have been concenrned that travellers waiting at the bus stop near no. 39 High Street (near Nelsons butchers shop) have to step between parked vehicles in order to get onto the bus, something which is difficult for those with mobility issues and those with pushchairs.

Councillors at the local Area Forum meeting asked South Glos Council to investigate the problem, and they've come up with a proposal to move the bus stop.

It is proposed that the existing bus stop is relocated in front of 29a/31 High Street (near Sante Et Beaute salon) and a build out is constructed incorporating a standard bus boarder (raised kerb). The build out will replace five existing car parking spaces.  A bus stop marking is proposed on the carriageway to protect the bus stop from parked vehicles.

More details of the bus stop proposals are on the South Glos website. The consultation runs until Friday 9 September.

Elswick Park consultation - Kennedy Way, Shackleton Avenue and Mulberry Crescent - Waiting Restrictions and Banned Right Turn

South Glos is consulting on restrictions associated with the Sea Stores development:

• At the junction of Kennedy Way / Normandy Drive (the new entrance road) to protect visibility;
• In the new layby in Kennedy Way (constructed for refuge collection vehicles) to prevent parking in the area;
• In the culs-de-sac of Shackleton Avenue and Mulberry Crescent (part of the new development) to prevent parking in the area around the emergency access to the development

It is proposed that vehicles leaving Elswick Parkwillonly be able to turn left towards Yate. They will not be able to turn right onto Kennedy Way.

Full details of the Elswick Park consultation are on the South Glos website - the closing date for comments is 2nd September.

Work at footbridge over railway to Wapley Bushes

On Wed 31 August  Network Rail will be carrying out survey work for electrifying the railway line, so they will be digging a couple of test trenches in the approach slopes to Sergeant's Farm Bridge.

Despite the warning notices the footpath will not need to be closed, so you can still get across from Shire Way to Wapley Bushes. Network Rail will also attend to the sunken patches in the path near the Radar Gate when they reinstate the survey trenches.

Tetbury bus service axed - we were right all along!

Back in February we predicted that the Tetbury - Yate - Bath bus service would be vulnerable to cuts in Gloucestershire County Council's bus budget. At the time this was denied by the GCC Cabinet Member for Transport (see the comments on our February article)

Well, we were right. GCC have withdrawn their support, and from 4th September the bus will start in Old Sodbury, then run through Yate, Pucklechurch and Wick to Bath - the new 620 timetable is here

Update 30/08/2011 - details of the new No.27 Tetbury to Old Sodbury link have now been published - many thanks to our commenter who pointed this out. The 27 connects to the 620 to Yate and then Bath - details are on the same timetable. The service frequency has been reduced to match the demand, and passengers now need to change at Old Sodbury.

There will also be some minor changes to the 482, 483 Chipping Sodbury - Yate - Cribbs Causeway route from 18 September. On Mondays to Fridays the timetable is altered and journeys on 482 towards Cribbs Causeway are re-routed to operate direct from Highwood Road to the Bus Station, omitting the loop via The Venue and Asda. There will be no change to Saturday or Sunday arrangements. The new 482/483 timetable is available here

Other bus timetables are available on the South Glos website. Note that there are two timetables for some services like the 620 - one before the service changes, and one from the change date onwards.

Latest on speed limit reductions

You may have read in the Gazette that the Council has now advertised the B4465, Westerleigh Road and Nibley Lane scheme. This is the next stage in the legal process for introducing the speed limits. 

In the paper it says that the deadline for comments is 1^st September. However, Claire Young spotted a mistake in the Notice of Proposal and raised this with officers. As a result a corrected Notice of Proposal has been issued and the deadline has been extended to 12 September 2012. 

You can see all the details of the consultation on the South Glos website.

Free cardboard recycling bags

To help stop cardboard blowing around our streets, South Gloucestershire Council is providing local residents that want one with a FREE bag for recycling cardboard. 

They will be available from 22 August on a first come, first served basis (one per household) from the following local places:

• Yate Leisure Centre
• Yate Library
• Chipping Sodbury Library
• Yate Town Council (Poole Court)
• Dodington Parish Council (Dodington Parish Hall, Finch Rd)
• Frampton Cotterell Parish Council (Brockeridge Centre)

Other locations are listed on the South Glos cardboard recycling web page

If you have a disability or mobility issue and there is no one else that can collect a bag for you, South Glos may be able to arrange delivery. Please contact 01454 863593 or email waste.management@southglos.gov.uk to talk about your situation.
(Delivery may take up to 10 working days)

Church Road, Yate to be closed for resurfacing

Church Road will be closed to through traffic from Greenways Road to Lawns Road for carriageway resurfacing this week, from Tuesday 16 August to Friday 19 August.

Police appeal for witnesses to assault in Chipping Sodbury, early hours of Sunday July 31

Police are appealing for witnesses to an assault in Chipping Sodbury.

The assault occurred at around 12.45am on Sunday July 31, 2011. The victim, a woman in her 30s, was outside the Portcullis pub in Horse Street. She received a fractured wrist and a grazed knee after being pushed to the ground.

An investigation into the assault is underway. Anyone who witnessed the incident is asked to contact Avon and Somerset Police on 0845 456 7000. Alternatively, phone the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. They never ask your name or trace your call.

Could you help the Friends of Ram Hill Colliery?

The Friends of Ram Hill Colliery are still looking for a new Chair and also volunteers for gardening at the site on a Wednesday or the 2nd or 4th Sunday of the month. If you can help please contact David Godden at da.godden@btinternet.com .

If you'd like to find out more about the site, why not go along to the Heritage Open Day between 10am and 4.30pm on Sunday 11th September. Or if you'd like to raise money to help the work of the Friends, get a quiz team together for Thursday 22nd September in the Miners Institute. To book a table call Steve and Liz Hillyard on 0117 923 6595.

Yate X-Ray - your views please!

We reported recently that the X-ray facility in the new West Gate Centre at Yate has started closing at 5pm due to lack of patients in the early evening. Focus councillors persuaded health chiefs to run a survey that asks you, the residents of the area about the hours and services you want at the Minor Injuries Unit, the X-ray facilities, and the outpatient clinics.

You can click here to complete the survey online, or download a copy to print out and send to a Freepost address or drop in to the NHS reception desk at the Yate West Gate Centre.

This letter from the NHS to residents explains more about the background to the survey.

Please take part in this survey to make sure that we get the local health service we want and need. The survey will run until Friday 30 September.