Letters to the Editor

SIR - Once again I find myself enraged after reading the T&A Court File and seeing the amount some people are fined for not having insurance for their cars. When are the courts going to realise that a £40 fine is not enough?

Two months ago my son passed his driving test. He is 18 years old and we have had an insurance quote of £2,847 for a car that is worth £375. They also told me that he would have an excess of £750.

Here's a tip for the courts - find out how much the insurance for the car the offender has been driving and make this the fine, plus costs, regardless if they work or not.

For example, insurance for a Vauxhall Astra 1.6 costs £2,847 plus £40 costs equals a £2,887 fine, not £40 - this is not a deterrent

Do the courts realise that you get a bigger fine for not sending your kids to school than you get for driving without insurance?

Michael Lee, Shirley Avenue, Wyke

Stick to the rules

SIR - Pauline Simpson (T&A Letters, February 10) states that it's wrong to catch people who speed and that if she acquires any more points she'll be unable to care for her autistic children. Stick to the rules Pauline!

I too drive for a living, taking disabled children to schools and adults to their centres. I have no points on my licence and stick to the rules. Do likewise!

Let's have more cameras, particularly on Manningham Lane outside Lister Park.

Robin Johnson, Littlecote, Thackley.

We will all pay...

SIR - The real price of supporting the Bingley relief road is emerging! Whatever the outcome of arguments, all Bradford's ratepayers will eventually pay for this folly.

The Highways Agency, Chris Leslie MP and Bradford Council should all explain why they ignored the Public Inquiry Inspector's recommendation that the relief road should proceed only if, on its opening, the onward link through Shipley would be completed within two years.

The Highways Agency justified the relief road as serving through strategic traffic yet now proposes to detrunk the road as it serves no strategic purpose. What a volte-face and misuse of public funds!

Through the contractual process, the Highways Agency allowed risk to fall on itself that the private contractor Amec should have shouldered. Now, sublimely, the Highways Agency seeks to offload that risk via Bradford Council on local council tax payers!

The Bingley ring road demonstrates yet again that new roads don't bring regeneration nor solve traffic problems, yet the Council is trying to resurrect the Shipley eastern bypass as a "solution" and proposes extensive traffic-generating housing development in Airedale.

It's time the Council adopted truly sustainable policies, and adopted a rigorous traffic reduction programme.

A J Plumbe, Oakwood Drive, Bingley.

Blair's betrayal

SIR - So Geoff Tasker feels no difference in his pocket since Labour came to power? (T&A, February 22).

Maybe he should ask the parents who have children at university. When Blair said "Education, Education, Education," he forgot to say he meant "Tax Education, Tax Education, Tax Education"!

If Mr Tasker feels no difference in his pocket he must work for one of the thousands of Government quangos Blair has set up.

Any pensioner will tell you their pensions have gone up in single figures, while their stealth taxes have gone up in double figures - council tax up 46 per cent, pensions up 17 per cent.

Blair promised to transform the public sector without touching taxes. He failed.

He was going to be 'tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime. Knife crime is up by 300 per cent. How's that for toughness?

The letters WMD do not stand for Weapons of Mass Destruction, they stand for Words of Mass Deceit.

He promised to sort out sleaze, so he hired people like Vaz, Kinnock, and Mandelson.

Says it all really, dunnit?

Jack Kinsman, Stainton Drive, Grimsby.

Time for clarity

SIR - It is a relief that after a long delay Glasshoughton railway station has opened to the public, despite the outstanding remedial work.

It would appear that due to the uncertainty within the rail industry the building of other much-needed stations in the Bradford area like Low Moor and Apperley Bridge will be further delayed, a situation which is incompatible with the need of meeting rising passenger demands and the requirements to reduce road congestion.

In view of this and the fact that a General Election is impending, the electorate would be advised to seek commitment by prospective candidates to support increased investment in public transport, so that improvements may be secured in both infrastructure and rolling stock.

The current government has shown an ambiguous attitude towards public transport investment, as evidenced by the cancellation of various light rail schemes and heavy rail enhancements, while favouring major road building schemes.

The electorate must make clear to the government that the above is not acceptable.

Alec Suchi, Secretary, Bradford Rail Users Group, Allerton Road, Bradford.

A fare increase

SIR - Critics of the impending 5p increase on concessionary bus and train fares claim that Metro is 'picking on pensioners'.

Metro's role is to develop and popularise public transport, and to help elderly and disadvantaged people to use transport facilities. We spend around £13m per year in subsidies for older people, and we also pay for socially-necessary evening, weekend and rural services, which the operators do not consider commercially viable. Without Metro's support these services would disappear.

Metro is funded through public subsidy and its own income. So when the operators' costs (wages, fuel etc) increase, we are faced with three options:

1. Greater public subsidy, which would be reflected in higher taxation;

2. Slashing our subsidies for socially-necessary bus services;

3. Asking those who benefit from concessionary fares to pay a small increase.

The only realistic and fair option is a minimal increase to concessionary fares (the smallest for many years) accompanied by extended hours when these fares apply, 9.30am onwards.

Besides representing excellent value, our concessionary fares are still the lowest charged in the UK, and we aim to keep them that way.

Coun Stanley King, Chairman, Metro.

Shot in the foot

SIR - May I congratulate Bradford Council which, in its infinite wisdom, has seen fit to grant a licence for our friendly neighbourhood sex shop to sell pornographic material and I dread to think what else.

This brings a whole new concept to the phrase Buy It In Bradford and begs the question: Buy what exactly?

I do think, along with many others who are trying to promote positive aspects of living and working in Bradford, that on this occasion the Council has shot itself in the foot and has blatantly disregarded public opinion.

Perhaps those who voted for it would like to explain to the rest of us the reasons for their sound judgment.

Sue Hannan, Bierley Hall Grove, Bradford.

Answers please

SIR - Re Keith Thomson's letter (T&A, February 9) regarding recycling, and his suggestion that the Council could have produced the informative "Community Pride" with recycled paper. If they had done so, we would all still be waiting to receive our copies because the Council continually fails to empty our bins of waste paper, even after persistent requests to do so.

Perhaps this failing is one of the Council's proposed cuts in services, together with an increase of 3.97 per cent in council tax. Could we as council taxpayers have some answers please?

Don H Brasenell, Bradlaugh Terrace, Wibsey.