In Touch

Phone box under threat from BT

THE PAYPHONE in Yew Tree Drive, Whiteley (pictured) faces the axe because BT says it is under-used and doesn’t pay. WHITELEY BT has invited residents to comment and to find Matters out how, turn to the full story on Page 3 of the Summer 2008 Sarisbury edition of In Touch. Whiteley bus link opens at last

THE LONG-AWAITED Whiteley bus link, which was beset with Borough delays due to builders Council will be Persimmon Homes taking an producing a excessive time to construct it Whiteley Whiteley on-line and correct defects, opened in Access Plan If you would like to get June. which will be "on-line" with members Use is restricted to buses informed by a of the community in a (school, public transport and local survey later friendly, non-threaten- company) and emergency vehi- this year. ing atmosphere to dis- cles, but the link can be opened That survey cuss issues about living up in the event of any serious inci- will include in Whiteley, dent affecting other vehicular data from the or any other topics of access to Whiteley. ongoing SATURN study which will interest then there is The road is controlled by rising include origin and destination sur- only one place to go. bollards and CCTV cameras and veys on motorists driving in and Log on to Whiteley only authorised vehicles with a around Whiteley so that likely traf- Community Forum at transponder will be able to use it. fic flows from various road opening www.whiteleyforum.net Acycleway and footpath have also options can be considered. been provided. People responding to the survey will therefore be doing so from a Delay by inches The £800,000 link cost Network Rail has Hampshire County Council only position of knowledge about the scotched plans for a £250,000, with the land, fees and likely impact of future highway shared cycle route construction costs being borne by decisions. between Whiteley and Persimmon Homes due to a legal Councillor Woodward added: "It Swanwick Station agreement drawn up several is only right that residents from because parapets on years ago by Fareham Borough , and the railway bridges are Council. Swanwick should be consulted just 8 inches too short. Hampshire County Councillor along with Whiteley residents as Opening day: Seán Woodward NR refused to depart Seán Woodward said: "It is impor- any decisions taken regarding boards the first bus to use the new from its standard which tant that the link is capable of access to Whiteley would affect Whiteley-Swanwick link road states that parapets for being used safely by all traffic as them also." (above top). a shared cycle way there would be severe criticism of The following businesses and must be 1.4m (4ft 7in); the highway authority if, when the schools have received licences The emergency services have those at the Swanwick day comes to open the link to all and transponder units allowing access cards and training DVDs to bridges are 1.2m (3ft traffic, the Council was scratching them access: enable them to use the bus link. 11in) and it would cost around for the money to convert a •Zurich Insurance Company (10 Councillor Woodward said the £150,000 to raise them. bus link to an all-vehicle link. Luckett’s coaches). County Council would consider Councillor Seán "It is important that First Bus and •Airlynx Ltd operating for requests for licences from any Woodward said: “Given Hampshire County Council work National Air Traffic Services (8 public transport operator. the high costs and the closely to improve the current buses). Possibilities include buses char- two-year rail posses- poor bus service to Whiteley as • Day Care Trust (2 tered by parents or schools to take sion timetable indicated the round trip by car from one side buses). children to schools outside by NR, I have taken the of the link to the other is approach- •The Gregg School and St Whiteley. Interest from other busi- opportunity briefly to ing seven miles." Winifred's School Trust (1 nesses on Solent Business Park is investigate an alterna- The County Council and minibus). also being followed up. tive design for the cycle route. New recruits needed to help Rotary Club ‘make a difference’ “This would entail a THE ROTARY Club of divided between men The ideals and con- community’ – than we segregated rather than Whiteley is looking for and women, professional cepts of Rotary could do alone. shared cycle route on recruits to keep the people living and /or International are such There are some mem- Botley Road, keeping club dynamic and suc- working in and around that we believe we can bership requirements, cyclists away from cessful and contribute Whiteley and Fareham do far more for those in but most important is the parapets to avoid the to its activities. who are keen to put need of help locally and will and the ability to turn expense and delay of Formed in 2003, its 30 something back into our throughout the world – up, pitch in and make a raising them.” members are equally community. as part of the ‘Rotary difference.

In Touch There’s no excuse – ignore these signs and WHITELEY you WILL get a ticket Matters Summer 2008 SELFISH motorists Council acquires Whiteley who had been getting away with parking in woodland from developers disabled bays got a shock when tickets for nature reserves were slapped on their windscreens. SIX HECTARES of land are being acquired by Patrols of the 9 dis- Fareham Council for use as nature reserves. abled spaces at Gull These two pieces of woodland in Whiteley that the Coppice have been Council currently manages have been leased from taken on by Fareham programme appropriate their regular Whiteley Pelham Homes. Council enforcement offi- patrols into their daily patrols. The 15-year lease expires this summer, so with this cers. schedules. Discussions are under in mind Pelham is undertaking a free transfer of the The bays are clearly Councillor Seán way to reduce traffic con- woodland areas in their ownership to the Council marked, so if you park Woodward said it had gestion at Gull Coppice with each party bearing their own legal costs. there without a blue taken some time to at school times. The cost of maintaining these sites will be about badge it will cost you a progress this traffic regu- One possibility is to cre- £2,500 per annum if the current 10-year manage- fine. lation order due to the ate a new pedestrian ment plan is implemented. These costs should Residents can also need to get the consent access to Whiteley reduce after 10 years. blow the whistle on any- of all of the landowners Primary School from The two areas to be acquired are 4.5 hectares body who abuses the involved. Rookery Avenue, where (11.1 acres) beside the Strawberry Track and 1.5 use of the bays, eg a fit Indiscriminate on-street parents will be able to hectares (3.7 acres) between Mustang Avenue and driver using a disabled parking at Gull Coppice, walk their children into Berber Close. person’s badge. including at junctions and school, parking if neces- Whiteley Councillor Seán Woodward said: “It is Call the Council on pavements, is a matter sary on Rookery Avenue important if we are to maintain and preserve these 01329-236100 following for the Police who have or in the park-and-stroll nature reserves for posterity that they are vested in which the 12-strong assured us that they will facility made available by the ownership of Fareham Borough Council. enforcement team will be targeting the area on the Solent Hotel car park. “They are a valuable resource for nature conserva- tion and form an important gap between housing End of the ‘obscene profits’ era for areas. “Woodland forms an important and valued feature Whiteley builders as recession bites of this area of Whiteley and it is important to con- FRENETIC house building serve some areas to which the public does not have in Whiteley has been hit general access. hard by the recession and is grinding to a halt. Cash ends garden ‘mud wallow’ One of the main develop- ers, Persimmon Homes, which earlier this month announced 2,000 job cuts nationwide, has almost ceased building there. Councillor David Still open: Persimmon’s Whiteley sales office, but Swanbrow said: “Their profits where are all the punters? for the first six months of this year are down 30%. obscene scale because they had been “Work appears to have slowed down able to sell every house before it was on their remaining Whiteley develop- completed. ment. One wonders if work on this site This often caused problems for new will come to a halt or just continue at a owners because the builders were so very slow pace. wrapped up in building more new COUNTY Councillor Seán Woodward presented a “Also, the Council may find it more dif- homes that they were reluctant to come cheque to Whiteley Community Association for ficult to get them to complete outstand- back to fix problems on anything that the completion of the Community Centre garden ing commitments such as tree planting. they had just sold. project. “There is also a possibility that work “New buyers may find that this contin- He said: "The garden is now transformed from a on the remaining development in the ues but for a muddy, unusable mess to an area that can be used Fareham part of Whiteley – land adjoin- different rea- In Touch is published by Sarisbury & Park Gate by all members of the community when they hire the ing Whiteley Lane – will not be pro- son. The Conservatives, 8 Persian centre." gressed this year.” builders just Drive, Whiteley PO15 7BJ and printed by Chameleon Print, He is pictured with treasurer Angela Irvine and chair- Builders had “had it all their own way won’t have Unit 3, Palmerston Business man Alan Russ. for years”, reaping profits on an almost the staff.” Park, Newgate Lane, Fareham PO14 1DJ.