Strong piece of investigative journalism here. What jumped out is the misalignment between need and uptake, those 11 London boroughs with 75% non-driveway households are exactly where this subsidy should be most effective. The wheelchair accessibility concern feels like it could cut both ways, current makeshift cable covers probably create more obstacles than proper gullies would. Would love to see a follow-up tracking which councils that did apply actualy deploy the infrastructure fastest since uptake and implementation are two very different things.
That’s very kind of you. And yes that’s an excellent point. Ironically, someone has also pointed out to me that some councils, like Cornwall, who declined the funding still offer pavement channels to residents… so why not take the free money?
I run a cable across the pavement encased in a soft rubber yellow and black protective sheath with shamfered sides to reduce trip hazard. For added visibility I put red and white road cones at each end, leaving enough space for a double buggy or wheelchair to pass. It’s worked for 5 years now without a hitch, but I would prefer to do it even more safely.
What’s the pavement itself like? I tend to think this works when the path is flat. I see some near me where the pavement is like the himalayas because of trees under the slabs, so an added plastic peak (and a channel tbh) would probably not be very helpful.
Excelent investigation into the uptake disparity. The irony that boroughs with 75% of households lacking off-street parking are precisely the ones opting out is striking - these residents face the highest public charging premiums yet their councils are declining infrastrcture subsidies. Michael Goulden's framing as 'not yet' rather than 'no' is generous, but I suspect many residents paying 10x more for public charging would prefer their councils had said 'yes' now.
Yes I think a lot of these that have said no really dislike the solutions on offer. Chelsea council once told me they would never cut into their 'York Stone' pavements.
Strong piece of investigative journalism here. What jumped out is the misalignment between need and uptake, those 11 London boroughs with 75% non-driveway households are exactly where this subsidy should be most effective. The wheelchair accessibility concern feels like it could cut both ways, current makeshift cable covers probably create more obstacles than proper gullies would. Would love to see a follow-up tracking which councils that did apply actualy deploy the infrastructure fastest since uptake and implementation are two very different things.
That’s very kind of you. And yes that’s an excellent point. Ironically, someone has also pointed out to me that some councils, like Cornwall, who declined the funding still offer pavement channels to residents… so why not take the free money?
I run a cable across the pavement encased in a soft rubber yellow and black protective sheath with shamfered sides to reduce trip hazard. For added visibility I put red and white road cones at each end, leaving enough space for a double buggy or wheelchair to pass. It’s worked for 5 years now without a hitch, but I would prefer to do it even more safely.
What’s the pavement itself like? I tend to think this works when the path is flat. I see some near me where the pavement is like the himalayas because of trees under the slabs, so an added plastic peak (and a channel tbh) would probably not be very helpful.
It's straightforward as there's only around a metre between the garden wall and edges of tree pits. Where it's uneven I stick the road cones
Excelent investigation into the uptake disparity. The irony that boroughs with 75% of households lacking off-street parking are precisely the ones opting out is striking - these residents face the highest public charging premiums yet their councils are declining infrastrcture subsidies. Michael Goulden's framing as 'not yet' rather than 'no' is generous, but I suspect many residents paying 10x more for public charging would prefer their councils had said 'yes' now.
Yes I think a lot of these that have said no really dislike the solutions on offer. Chelsea council once told me they would never cut into their 'York Stone' pavements.