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Elections



Local elections (City/SouthCambs), May 2010: East Chesterton

Summary: Elections to Cambridge City Council (and South Cambs District Council) in May 2010.
Polling date: Thursday 6th May 2010
Ward: East Chesterton
Candidates
(by surname):
  • Gerri BIRD  (Labour Party)
  • Dan COOPER  (Labour Party)
  • Matt ELLIS  (Green Party)
  • Kevin Andrew FRANCIS  (Conservative Party)
  • Anna GORDON  (Cambridge Socialists)
  • Susannah KERR  (Liberal Democrat)
  • Una Mary MCCORMACK  (Conservative Party)
  • Peter Harry POPE  (Green Party)
  • Roman ZNAJEK  (Liberal Democrat)

Questions for East Chesterton ward candidates (5 questions)

Jump to question:  1   2   3   4   5 

# Question 1

There is a major shortage of cycle parking all around the city. Cycle theft is over 10% of all reported crime in the County. Do you have any suggestions for locations for cycle parking? Would you be willing to see a very small proportion of on-street car parking being replaced by on-street cycle parking in your ward? How will you work towards a situation where every resident and every worker in every ward can keep a bike safe?

Relevant links (each opens in a new window):

Dan COOPER
(Labour Party)

I will raise the standards of the street surfaces within East Chesterton first so that the public using any form of transport can have an improved quality of journey.

Once this has been completed I would consult the residents and local business for there ideas on cycle parking and safety, since they are the ones using the service.

I would in principle support a reduction in car parking. I would however not want this to result in a rise in illegal car parking due to a lack of parking spaces for vehicles.

I would work to strengthen the bonds of local community, local business and local PCSO within each ward so that residents can work in a co-operative scheme, to jointly raise capital and enthusiasm so cycle theft can be kept at a minimum.
Peter Harry POPE
(Green Party)

The most important element of cycle security is a good lock. Employers who already promote cycling to work through bike loans or subsidies should insist on a quality lock as part of the package. More employers should follow suit. Workplace cycle racks should have weather protection and be located in a prominent position for security and to help raise the profile of cycling.

I would like to see a significant proportion of on-street car parking converted for cycles, where there is an identified need.

The city council should offer free cycle security rings to attach to houses, plus a fitting service at modest cost.
Una Mary MCCORMACK
(Conservative Party)		 The candidate has not responded to the survey.
Anna GORDON
(Cambridge Socialists)		 The candidate has not responded to the survey.
Roman ZNAJEK
(Liberal Democrat)

The worst place for cycle parking in the CIty is of course the Railway Station. More and better cycle parking would be useful near local facilities like pubs and shops. I would much rather see more Sheffield Stands rather than the flimsy and awkward contraptions outside (say) the Tesco in High Street Chesterton. I would be willing to see some reduction in on-street car parking but I think this would only rarely be necessary.

# Question 2

Do you support our view that traffic policing (including fining of cyclists without lights or using pedestrian-only pavements) should become a greater police priority?

Relevant links (each opens in a new window):

Dan COOPER
(Labour Party)

I would push for more power to PCSO so they can have the ability to deliver on the spot fines and cycle confiscations within there own wards, so the burden can be lifted from the full time police. This would allow the full time police to focus on key prioritised public policing needs as we leave recession.
Peter Harry POPE
(Green Party)

Yes.
Una Mary MCCORMACK
(Conservative Party)		 The candidate has not responded to the survey.
Anna GORDON
(Cambridge Socialists)		 The candidate has not responded to the survey.
Roman ZNAJEK
(Liberal Democrat)

Yes, but there are many higher police priorities which I would not wish to see downgraded.

# Question 3

We believe that 20mph should be the norm for local streets in residential areas (as distinct from main connecting roads). 20mph would: greatly encourage walking and cycling; improve the quality of life in an area for residents; and would not delay car journeys significantly (because only the start/end of a journey would be affected). Do you agree that 20mph should become the norm for local streets in Cambridge and surrounding villages?

Relevant links (each opens in a new window):

Dan COOPER
(Labour Party)

I would push for a dual speed limit of 30MPH for buses and 20MPH for cars and all other vehicles. This would encourage people who still want to travel by some kind of automotive vehicle at speed (or can not physically use a bicycle) the ability to do so by bus instead of car. This would drop the number of vehicles on the road and would improve cycle safety, while pleasing residents who use public transport.
Peter Harry POPE
(Green Party)

Twenty's Plenty, I agree. I believe that it will help to change attitudes to speed and eventually to develop social pressures that will even contain the lunatic fringe. (A recent police survey clocked one motorist in North Cambridge at 68mph).
Una Mary MCCORMACK
(Conservative Party)		 The candidate has not responded to the survey.
Anna GORDON
(Cambridge Socialists)		 The candidate has not responded to the survey.
Roman ZNAJEK
(Liberal Democrat)

Yes, for residential as opposed to major connecting roads in the City. I would be inclined to support 20mph in the villages, but that is an issue for them rather than for City Councillors.

# Question 4

Do you support our proposal for ‘The Chisholm Trail’, a cycling super-highway that would run roughly along the railway, joining up the Science Park to Addenbrookes? This high-profile scheme would cut journey times, give people a genuine, realistic alternative to car use and help the city cope with the population increase which will take place in the coming years.

Relevant links (each opens in a new window):

Dan COOPER
(Labour Party)

I would support The Chisholm Trail and would go further by looking to link other key industries in Cambridge such as Marshall Aerospace and Cambridge University Press by cycle route.

Other key commuter locations such as Barhill and Cambourne would also have to be linked by safe cycle access into the city, to cope with the rise in the population of Cambridge and the surrounding areas over the last 20 years.
Peter Harry POPE
(Green Party)

Yes please.
Una Mary MCCORMACK
(Conservative Party)		 The candidate has not responded to the survey.
Anna GORDON
(Cambridge Socialists)		 The candidate has not responded to the survey.
Roman ZNAJEK
(Liberal Democrat)

It's an interesting idea. Depends on the cost, of course. I've cycled rather than driven around Cambridge for nearly forty years. For me, cycling already is a genuine, realistic alternative to car use. I'm a bit suspicious of flagship projects. Incremental improvements around the town might be a better use of resources.

# Question 5

Do you have any other general cycling-related comments or points? And what support have you given for cycling and walking, or sustainable transport more generally, in the past?

Dan COOPER
(Labour Party)

I believe that if we want a society with social mobility and a green economy, we must encourage people of all ages to engage in the dialogue.

With this in mind I would seek to establish a forum for young and old from ALL walks of life within Cambridge to discuss innovative ideas in ALL areas of public transport for the future.
Peter Harry POPE
(Green Party)

The lighting issue is a key one. I believe that the Cycling Campaign could provide a useful service by actively endorsing a small range of reliable and user friendly lighting sets. The range of lights available commercially is so broad as to inhibit rational choice.

Young cyclists are in the habit of dumping their bikes on the pavement outside supermarkets and sweetie shops, where pedestrians could be badly injured. Better bike parking and education should help but for persistent offenders police should have the power to confiscate bikes.

My primary support for cycling is to do it!
Una Mary MCCORMACK
(Conservative Party)		 The candidate has not responded to the survey.
Anna GORDON
(Cambridge Socialists)		 The candidate has not responded to the survey.
Roman ZNAJEK
(Liberal Democrat)

Speaking personally, and not as any kind of party spokesperson, I feel the City Centre is terribly overcrowded with pedestrians, cyclists and cars - even without the cars and taxis! It's difficult to find a constructive solution to this: radical demolition could be an answer, but would of course be unacceptable to many if not most people. So we'll just struggle along.

As a campaigner and then LibDem city councillor in East Chesterton in the 1980s and 1990s, I helped to lead the successful fight to stop the Conservative-controlled County Council, abetted by then Labour-controlled City Council, from destroying Milton Road's trees and grass verges. No single tree is sacred, but I would much rather cycle along a dual-use path surrounded by trees and grass verges, than in a bus lane shared with speeding buses in a bleak and cheerless landscape. Other issues I was involved with included installing pedestrian and pelican crossings (there weren't any in the early 1980s!), getting a 30mph speed limit on Milton Road, and cycle safety on The Haling Way.

Cambridge Cycling Campaign is a non-partisan body. All candidates are given an equal opportunity to submit their views. Information published by Cambridge Cycling Campaign, PO Box 204 Cambridge, CB4 3FN.