Madam,

It appears the Council have failed in their responsibility to keep the roadside environment in good order, to the extent that waist high grass is now creating a driving hazard particularly along Habberley Lane and no doubt other locations across the borough.

Allegedly, there is a dispute over the funding WFDC gets from the county, with WFDC saying this amount is not sufficient to cover basic services like grass cutting.

We must assume in that case, that grass cutting is just another service our Council Tax is supposed to cover that is no longer available.

What's next, not collecting the recycling or the rubbish. Come on Council, get this sorted, Pronto.....

Robin Pearson

Madam,

You have run an article on the opening of the new medical centre in Stourport.

I would like to point out that I feel the design is seriously lacking in all inclusiveness.

The building has a hospital feel about it, is noisy and very echoey and the quiet area is lacking the quietness. All of this is very distressing to those with autism.

How can anyone in health care forget about people with special needs?

They not only have to get used to going to a new building but an unsuitable one.

R Jones

Madam,

The installation of cashless machines will make our car parks inaccessible to some people, notably the less well-off and the older, less digitally savvy.

Cash as a means of payment is still valued by most people, and for many it is more, not less, convenient.

I keep a small number of ‘parking’ coins in my car to enable me, at any time, to use any car park ; this works admirably.

I was unable to pay – ‘No Cash’ it said. Somebody was good enough to pay for me, but there was a long queue because some people struggled to use the machine, and the system just didn’t work as quickly as good old cash. Imagine how that would have been in the pouring rain!

We are told that one in five drivers currently choose to pay online.

This means that four in five drivers choose not to pay online. I would suggest that there is a significant number of people who are not able to pay online – maybe because they don’t have a smart phone or ipad, or they are just not very good with digital technology ; these people will be, mostly but not exclusively, in the higher age bracket and will be disadvantaged if they are confronted by machines that only accept digital payment.

Considering the issue of reliability, we are all aware that, occasionally, digital technology can fail; batteries run out, wireless interference causes problems, lack of connectivity, phones and cards run out of data or get stolen, lost, damaged, or even left behind.

Coins have few disadvantages; we all have them, we can keep them safely in a pocket or the car. The only power needed for them to operate is…gravity.

If they are lost, stolen or damaged they are easily replaced. I believe that cash is by far the best method of payment, but the option to pay digitally should be offered to those who prefer it.

Concerns about Covid are, I think, overplayed ; when shopping, we frequently touch handrails, open doors, and handle goods without thinking. Covid is spread, mainly, by aerosols so minimal contact with a machine is unlikely to be a problem.

We need to remember that car parks are public facilities paid for, primarily, by council tax payers, but also by all tax payers; it would be wrong indeed to deny people the right to use something for which they have already paid.

There is, of course, the hidden agenda of surveillance which has been steadily encroaching on our freedom over the last few decades.

We still have the right to a certain level of anonymity as we go about our legitimate business, and cash transactions allow that to continue; the removal of the right to pay our way by cash is insidious and undemocratic.

Our public car parks are vital for a healthy town centre, and so, in the best case scenario, they should be free to all to use. If that is not financially viable, they should be easily accessible to all; paying cash as the main option, with digital options if deemed necessary.

Fairness and common sense must surely be the arbiters.

Robert Porter