24 Feb Protest in the Peak Park (UK)

[David Sparkes]

The next "Back to Tarmac" protest drive in the Peak Park will be on Sunday 24th February 2013. The arrangements will be similar to last time - meet at Monsal Head public car park at 10am, and a circular on-road slow drive around the Peak District with a short stop about halfway for publicity photos. Finish will again be at the Yonderman cafe at Wardlow Mires in the afternoon.
This time our convoy will include a 12ft x 8ft advertising trailer to make our message clearer to all.
Further details of the route, and window signs etc will be circulated nearer the time.
Please tell your friends, and put the 24th February in your diary!
We need the Peak Park Authority to realise that we are serious about protecting green lanes from unnecessary closure, and that we aren't going away!

Cheers.

[nicks90]

i'm all for public demonstrations and definitely all for trying to prevent greenlane closures.

but I fail to see how a line of 50 dirty stinking landrovers leaking oil and blowing blue smoke, driving about the countryside at slow speed irritating the bajeeeesus out of evey other road user who actually needs to go somewhere, is actually going to improve our image or help our cause.

People who will not be impressed with a 'go slow protest' ---- 1) general public stuck behind the queue 2) council decision makers who then have to deal with complaining public 3) police who may have to get involved/inconvenienced in ensuring the protest goes off safely.

To get anywhere with lane closures we need all 3 of those groups on our side. Annoying the cr*p out of them is an unusual tactic for sure.

[ejparrott]

I have previously made suggestions as to my feelings on the matter, and the response was to 'sort my priorities out'.....p**ssing off the police is not one of my priorities, and I'm not about to make it one either. I'm inclined to agree with you Nick.

[GBMUD]

i'm all for public demonstrations and definitely all for trying to prevent greenlane closures.... ...2) council decision makers who then have to deal with complaining public

One assumes that is part of the point of the protest.

3) police who may have to get involved/inconvenienced in ensuring the protest goes off safely.

To get anywhere with lane closures we need all 3 of those groups on our side.

It is the police's responsibility to ensure the public safety, not least when the public is actively and peaceably engaging in the democratic process. I hope that no policeman or woman sees doing his or her job as an inconvenience. There will, of course, be time for coffee and doughnuts later.

I had always assumed that the police have almost nothing to do with rights of way decisions within the national park, though one assumes they can make suggestions or requests to the NPA the same as anyone else. I understand that it is the job of the NPA to make rights of way policy decisions. Am I wrong in this belief?

Chris

[nicks90]

I had always assumed that the police have almost nothing to do with rights of way decisions within the national park, though one assumes they can make suggestions or requests to the NPA the same as anyone else. I understand that it is the job of the NPA to make rights of way policy decisions. Am I wrong in this belief?

you are right - however the police will have to enforce any restrictions put in place by the NPA.

[David Sparkes]

It's this coming Sunday!

I should let people know that there may be some collection pots being carried around, so people can voluntarily contribute towards the cost of some planned advertising. 50% has been promised already, so we are looking to collect the other 50%.

I would hate people to feel embarrassed by not having gold coloured coins, or perhaps a paper Fiver, available as a collector passes by. :-)

We expect to be setting up a JustGiving page, or similar, in the not too distant future, for those who aren't able to attend an event.

Thanks for your support.

[Nigelw]

Good luck with the demonstration!

I recently watched a short video by ellbarto(i think?) about the lanes and proposed closures of yet more lanes.

I bid you success and unfortunately being on the bigger rock and having heavy work commitments means I cannot attend, but do set up a donations page, it is a worth while cause, but will GLASS not help with donations or is this against their wishes?

[David Sparkes]

GLASS will help, and have funded the two 8ftx12ft signs made for the advertising trailer we had at the recent PDNPA HQ demonstration, and which we will be towing around today. The use of the advertising trailer itself is a donation from the owner, who has it available for hire by anybody, but has given us free use, whenever we require it (if not already booked by a paying Customer).

GLASS have been asked for funds for this latest idea, but the timing of the request meant they were asked before we had created the advert we wanted to use. Do to other pressures on their funds they declined to buy a 'white space', and although I'm not a member of their Executive, I can't criticise them for financial prudence.

That is to say, I wouldn't have spent my money in the same circumstances.

We now have an agreed design, which the collectors will display on Sunday. If we get enough funds we will place the order in early March; that is to say, if we don't make enough money on Sunday we will have a week or two to find the shortfall, and amend the design if someone is prompted to produce a better version.

After we have committed I'll be more open with the details in public forums where the readership could easily include people who do not wish us well.

Thanks for your support.

[Nigelw]

And.......

How did it go? Good turn out?

[G4FUJ]

I think a Morgan friend of mine was on it in his SII.

Said it was a good turnout (but the loos were locked at the half way stop...).

He seemed to have enjoyed his day out.

[David Sparkes]

For the UK, it was a very cold weekend, as it has been for several days. It hasn't snowed in this area for over a week, but where snow had collected along field edges etc it hasn't melted. We feel the cold weather affected the turnout, and certainly affected the spirit on the day.

We started with about 20 4x4 and 20 Motorcyclists, but 'lost' a few M/C along the way.

The single PC, with PCSO, attended at the start, and at the end, where he was able to say there had been no reports or complaints. They then got called away to assist with a 'social disturbance' at the car park at Chatsworth House!!

The halfway halt at the Speedwell Cavern car park is one we have used before, and not had this problem, but this time the Tourist GeeGaw shop owner rushed out and locked the toilets, as we weren't going on a boat trip to the Cavern. This was considered an unfriendly act on such a cold day, especially by the motorcyclists.

We will rethink the strategy of the mid way photo-opportunity.

Reading the temperature, in every sense of the word, we decided it would be adding insult to injury to dun people for money, especially as they had given time and effort already, so we are re-thinking / re-working our fund raising.

We have had better turn-outs, and better days.

In March there will probably be a call for people to attend the relevant committee meeting of the Peak Park Authority, where we expect them to be discussing a 2nd attempt to close Chapel Gate. However, the Authority won't confirm this until one week before the Friday 22nd March Committee Meeting. Thus we aren't planning a Publicity Drive in March. We have yet to decide on an April date.

Publicity Drive:

We don't intend these events to be an opportunity to cause maximum disruption to the maximum number of people.

Rather they are an essential 'hook' for publicity in the local press, TV, and radio. On this occasion, Radio Derby were chasing GLASS on Saturday for a spokesperson to be available on Monday. We did field a representative, originally scheduled for 8:50 am, it got re-scheduled to about 17:15. I didn't hear the interview, but want to emphasise that the Air Time and Column Inches reach a much wider audience than the Publicity Drive itself, although that's the essential seed corn.

The PD gives an opportunity for the 'Average Joe' to do something positive in supporting our cause, while being on a Sunday the PD actually has minimal effect on the life of the general public.

This time we drove through the centre of Buxton, rather than just touching the outskirts. About 11:00 am Sunday it looked more like a ghost town than anything outside a spaghetti Western.

Our Targets are the politicians who set the policy for the Peak Park Authority. We want to expose their discrimination and financial mismanagement relating to one group of Recreational Users. Politicians like to be liked, and if we can embarrass them by exposing their mean spirited and narrow minded actions there is every possibility they will change their minds.

Put that another way, we have tried the Technical Arguments, and the 'being nice to the employees of the Authority', and have been losing the battle. The political Members don't care about those things, so we need to change tactics, and focus attention on the politicals.

Just to reassure the nay-sayers, we continue to be nice to the employees (Officers, in the jargon), we continue to trip up the Authority over Technical Issues, but highlighting the discriminatory attitudes and actions of the Political Members receives our main attention.

Thanks for reading so far :-)

[Nigelw]

I congratulate the turn out and support you in your actions, when your donation page is set up I will be putting my hand in my pocket for it rest assured!

I agree entirely with you on the subject of the PDNP mismanaging the peaks, and with a good bit of research it could be proven as well, I have often thought on the subject of green lane closures within the UK and within these troubled economic times I feel it ridiculous to continue to push away revenue streams from those who actively enjoy green laning and seeing the countryside from the seat of their car, there are a great deal of closures from shops and pubs, rural filling stations and the likes that could be better sustained if they could actually see things from an everyday mans perspective, ok I am not saying that a group of three vehicles would spend enough to keep a village shop running, but if the lanes were re-opened and there was a lot more publicity in the public eye as to what is deemed as responsible green lane driving then there would be more traffic on the rural byways and then there would be more opportunities for money to be made from them and I think I can speak from experience here when I say that a group of drivers may be more likely to pop in to a village pub for a pit stop and spend a few quid than a couple of cars of walkers who more often than not come fully prepared with thermos and sarnies for their day and fill up at Tesco when they do the shopping due to convenience, where as a group of drivers who are using fuel throughout the day might well tank at a local filling station as they could be getting low?

I also note the potential revenues from advertising the byways of the PDNP, if there were thought given to future improvements then there could be organised activities and then B&Bs and restaurants could also benefit from drivers, yes I am all to aware that there are a lot of ramblers who venture there in the summer months to enjoy the stunning scenery but they are in essence seasonal holiday makers and are not so keen to ramble in the cold and wet of late autumn, winter and spring where as drivers are more likely to enjoy the challenge of the terrain in those months and also are not so deterred by the weather due to being inside a vehicle, there could be subscriptions to drive the lanes within the park and these could be displayed by a placard in the windscreen and signed at the beginning and end of lanes within the park.

I see a lot of missed opportunities and a public that is not so willing to go walking due to the pressures and commitments of life and although the same could be said for drivers, I feel that the fact that a lot more ground can be covered in a vehicle and a lot more sights can be seen, and this is the reality, people want to see the scenery and the sights but they often do not have the time, and for some the ability to walk for several miles to see the views from just one site and would like to see more but by driving they can see more of the scenes and enjoy the park for the beauty that it beholds.

Sorry to ramble, no pun intended but I needed to get that off my chest!