The Ultimate Bus Stop
London has very comprehensive bus stops as these pictures show.
Note.
- Most bus stops have a pole mounted roundel, that can be seen from a reasonable distance. In many cases, anybody with reasonable sight can see the roundel for the next stop.
- Where space permits, bus stops have a shelter with seats, maps and instructions on ticketing.
- Some stops have been extended into the road, so that it is a level step into and out of the bus.
- As shown in the pictures, so bus stops have displays showing the next ten buses, that will be arriving.
But I do think, they could be improved, with extra features.
Internet Connectivity
I feel strongly, that all bus stops should have good internet connectivity.
This could be 4G, 5G or just wi-fi, but I believe this could help with the safety of people on the street.
Comprehensive Lighting
To contribute to safety, I also feel that all bus stops should be well lit.
CCTV Issues
I also feel that all bus stops should have provision for CCTV, so if there was a need, it could be quickly fitted. But if the bus stop had good internet connectivity, then this shouldn’t be a problem.
Phone Charging
New buses have this feature, so why not at the stops?
Power Supply Issues
If we add all these features, we could be needed an uprated power supply.
- So could we see bus stops, with solar panels on the roof.
- Perhaps even a mini wind turbine?
- I think a vertical wind turbine, which was similar to a SeaTwirl, but smaller, could be ideal!
- Could it be called a StreeTwirl?
- A self-powered bus could be created with the addition of a battery.
Self-powered bus stops might be easier to install.
Conclusion
Bus stops will have more features in the future.
Denmark’s Bank Robbers Count The Cost Of Cashless Society
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on The Times.
This is the second paragraph.
Figures from Finans Danmark, an industry association, show the number of attacks has collapsed in recent years as the shift towards online transactions has led many Danish banks to abandon cash services in branches. While there were 221 bank robberies in 2000, the number of hold-ups in Denmark fell to 121 in 2004, before declining to one in 2021 and none last year.
There were also no attacks on ATM machines.
Doing away with cash certainly cuts crime and it must be twelve years, since a Unite representative on Manchester buses told me he wanted cashless ticketing on Manchester’s buses and trams, as since it had been introduced in London, attacks on staff had declined dramatically.
I also wonder by how much the Income Tax take would rise?
Violence Against Women
The BBC is rightly having a campaign against domestic violence and violence against women in general.
It also appears to me, that women seem to get killed and attacked, a lot more than they did a couple of decades ago.
Is there too much violence against women in TV dramas, so men with small brains think it is acceptable? Surely, it is also wrong to have a TV drama called Killing Eve?
I have only watched a couple of TV dramas or films, in the last couple of years; Some Like It Hot and SAS Rogue Heroes.
Manchester Arena Attack: Families ‘Disgusted’ By Memorial Trespassing
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
These are the introductory paragraphs,
Families of people killed in the Manchester Arena attack have said they were “disgusted” after a memorial site for the 22 victims was trespassed on.
The Glade of Light memorial in the city centre remains a building site and does not officially open until the new year.
Two bereaved families said they were appalled to find the security fences pulled down on Sunday.
The article also said this.
Ms Curry said she found hundreds of people were walking through the area, which is supposed to be closed to the public.
She said one man stood on a memorial stone and was abusive when challenged, another woman vomited all over the area, and groups of youths were openly smoking drugs.
I can’t understand what led to this aggressive trespass.
When, I am in certain cities, there does seem to be more low life on the streets than you habitually see in London.
I do wonder, if it is partly because of London’s transport regulations and actions as laid down by the Mayor and Transport for London.
London has an extensive CCTV network and after the London bombings of July the seventh and the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes in 2005, I’m sure it was improved.
Did the improved CCTV and the police action in the shooting the unfortunate Brazilian, deter a lot of low life from going to the centre?
Ken Livingstone or was it Boris, introduced a policy of banning alcohol on London’s transport system.
The precise details are given in this recent article on the Sun.
I have a feeling it had a positive effect, but did it mean that less drunks found their way to the centre?
In 2011, I sat next to a guy on a Manchester bus going from Piccadilly Gardens to Bury. I noticed that about a dozen youths were harassing the driver, trying to get his fare money and remarked on this to my companion.
My companion on hearing my London accent, said you don’t get that in London because of the contactless ticketing, as there is no fare money on the bus.
I was surprised at his reply and asked him to explain. It turned out he was a Trade Union Official, who looked after bus workers in Manchester. He told me his Union wanted a London-style contactless ticketing system, as it had drastically cut the number of attacks on staff in London.
Having worked with the Metropolitan Police on the analysis of data, they have also found that contactless ticketing helps in the tracing of people through London’s transport network and has solved several serious crimes.
Conclusion
I feel that terrorism and London’s reaction to it, banning of alcohol on public transport, contactless ticketing and other measures have helped keep drunks and those up to no good out of the centre.
Covid: Hackney Railway Arch Rave Attended By ‘300 People’
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the introductory paragraphs.
Police have issued more than £15,000 in fines after 300 people attended an illegal rave in a railway arch.
Officers raided an unlicensed music event in Nursery Road, Hackney, at 01.30 GMT on Sunday.
Sounds to me, that the safest way to handle this number of ravers, is to use a water cannon, firing smart water, so they can be identified for a couple of weeks.
Greater Manchester Illegal Raves: Man Dies, Woman Raped And Three Stabbed
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the introductory paragraph.
A 20-year-old man has died, a woman has been raped and three people have been stabbed during two illegal “quarantine raves” that attracted 6,000 people.
What the hell was going on?
There have been some exuberant parties in Hackney Marshes, but they didn’t appear to be the on the scale of the Mancunian troubles.
Last night on Stephen Nolan’s program, there was some very heated debate on what went on in Manchester. Some, who had been present, should have been arrested, if what they alleged they’d done was true.
If you look at total COVID-19 cases in London and the North West on June 15th, they are as follows.
- London 27, 330 – 306.8
- North-West 26,759 – 367
The second figure is a rate per 100,000 of the population. Although the Government data doesn’t give the legend on the chart! Poor presentation again from the Government statisticians!
I have been on public transport a lot in London and the behaviour of passengers seems to follow the rules. Especially, on the Overground, which seems to be busier than the buses and the Underground. Today on a trip out, everybody I saw on public transport was masked!
London Church Investigated Over ‘Protection’ Oil
The title of this post, is the same as that as this story on the BBC.
This is the first two paragraphs.
A faith healer who sold £91 “plague protection kits” claiming they could shield people from Covid-19 is being investigated by the charity watchdog.
Bishop Climate Wiseman of the Kingdom Church in Camberwell, London, claimed a bottle of oil and some red yarn would protect his followers from the virus.
Surely, he should be being investigated by the Metropolitan Police!
As far as I can see, the purpose of some religion is to let a few men, live a good life, at the expense of others.
Police Powers Bill
Type the name of this proposed bill from the new Government into Google and you only get a hit from The Times.
This is what the newspaper says about the bill.
Gives police greater powers to criminalise travellers who set up unauthorised encampments and allows them to seize their property and vehicles.
I used to live in rural Suffolk for forty years on farms and there will be lots of Suffolk residents who will welcome this bill.
Travellers in parts of rural England, are blamed for a lot of things that happen, like burglaries, theft of ride-on mowers and illegal coursing, often at night.
My properties never suffered personally, although we did have lots of lights and checked that everything was locked up. But others weren’t so lucky!
I also feel from talking to local people in both Suffolk and Dalston, that crime levels are lower here. We’ve only had one burglary in my road, since I moved in and that was when a guy left his keys in the door.
I also remember one of C’s stories.
One of her cases was a divorce involving the so-called King of the Gypsies. She thought it would be a difficult case, but he was an Honorable man, who lived in a semi in a local town. He complied with the Court’s orders and was the perfect client. On the other hand his hatred for the travelling, was on a stratospheric scale.
But I can’t stop feeling that this is going to be the Bill, that will give Boris Johnson, his biggest trouble in the Commons..
Thomas Cook Collapses As Rescue Talks Fail
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
The title says it all and I’m listening to a phone-in on BBC Radio 5 about the collapse.
What puzzles me, is that, this collapse has been on the cards for some months, with travel experts, like Simon Calder,, advising anybody booking with Thomas Cook to take precautions like get full insurance and use a credit card.
If I had been buying a package deal, I certainly wouldn’t have touched Thomas Cook with a bargepole.
Did people still book, as they knew the Government would pick up the tab?
Why should I pay extra taxes because of the stupidity of others?
The biggest stupidity of all, is that the Directors of Thomas Cook decided to keep trading, when they were obviously insolvent.
I thought that was a criminal offence, so surely some long jail sentences are in order.
Now It’s Thieves On The Line As Crooks Target Railway Cables
The title of this post is the same as that of an article in The Times on Tuesday.
I was involved in a similar project with British Rail, where they were looking at patterns in signalling cable faults on the East Coast Main Line. My software Daisy was used to display the patterns.
I know in this case British Rail got a solution.
I even have their internal report somewhere!
The Anonymous Widower 