CARPETBAGGER is a word normally used to describe an investor in a building society who does so in the expectation of a windfall.
A look at a dictionary will give its meaning as "a candidate for office with no local connections", i.e. a councillor representing a ward in which he or she does not reside.
I live in Greenlands ward, probably the most neglected ward in Blackpool, and possibly neglected because over the last decade our councillors have lived miles away from the ward.
It has now become as difficult to cross Warley Road as it is to cross Devonshire Road. There is a pedestrian crossing on Devonshire Road but nothing on Warley.
This junction is calling out for traffic signals and controlled crossings and is a very much busier junction than the one at Devonshire Road and Warren Drive, where there are signals and controlled crossings.
Next to the bus shelter opposite the Devonshire Arms there is a "keep clear" sign on the road.
This was put there so that wheelchairs and prams would have easy access. Not so, as cars park on this sign meaning that mothers with prams have to negotiate between parked cars and vans.
Yes, we do have problems with cyclists riding on the pavement but a bigger problem in this respect is that we have cars and vans driving down the pavement in preference to reversing out onto a busy Devonshire Road.
Devonshire Road is a very busy road and at peak times progress is very slow.
But outside these times, although it is designated as a built up area and should have a restriction of 30mph, some cars have been travelling at 60-70mph.
Surely there is a need for speed cameras or some other traffic calming measure, i.e. a roundabout at the junction of Claremont Road and Devonshire Road?
We have double yellow lines in many places around this area but nobody takes any notice of them because the last time a traffic warden was seen round here was about four years ago.
This is just one part of Blackpool crying out for improvement. No doubt other areas need looking at. It would be interesting to know just how many carpetbaggers there are, i.e. people representing wards in which they do not reside.
T S Fearnley,
Devonshire Road,
Blackpool.
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