With the summer season now in full flow it is good to see
the area busy with tourists.
Many businesses I speak to are positive about the way this
summer is shaping up.
Whilst I appreciate the influx of tourists into Newquay and
the area, where we see the population more than treble in August, present a
number of challenges for locals, we cannot escape the fact that our economy
depends on the tourist industry. Thousands of local jobs directly and
indirectly rely on people choosing to come and take their holidays here.
But there is no doubt it is vital our local infrastructure
is able to cope with not just the influx of people in the summer but also with
the growing local all year population. We need to continue to see investment in
our roads, school and health services particularly, as well as the local
economy so that people are able to have decent jobs. This is something I remain
committed to fight for and have already been working. in a number of ways, to
make sure we get the funding and investment this area needs.
As is often the case when major infrastructure investment
takes place there can be significant disruption as a result – such as we have
seen on the A30 at Temple and more locally the new road junction near Hendra.
Thankfully that was completed in time for the peak season.
One issue that has been highlighted to me recently is the number of cars parked on local streets. With more cars than ever on our roads and most households having more than one vehicle to park overnight, our residential streets can become clogged with cars parked along them.
Our older streets were designed a time long before the
number of cars we all have today. The previous government’s attempt to move us
away from using our cars and impose limits on the number of car spaces
developers could provide in modern housing estates also exasperated the issue.
Thankfully planning policy has now been relaxed and developers are able to
allow more space. But we are still left with a legacy of too many cars for too
few spaces in many areas.
It can be all too easy to simply park our cars in the place
most convenient to us and not think about the impact this may have on access in
an emergency. I have been asked by the local Emergency Services to publicly highlight
the problems they have experienced, and ask that car owners consider how they
park and that when they park, they do so in a way that does not hinder the
emergency services doing their job.
On a recent call out to what could have been a very
dangerous situation, the fire tender was unable to get down a street in Newquay
due to the way cars had been parked. I am sure you will all agree this is not
helpful and could potentially cost lives, something none of us want to see.
We are all very grateful to all of the services that help
make this area a safe place to work and play. I would like to publicly thank
them for their continued dedication, commitment and service to our community.
One way we can thank them is by taking notice of where and how we park.
As always, my team and I are here to serve the whole
constituency and work hard to make a real difference to the lives of everyone
needing support. If there is an issue you would like my assistance on then
please contact me on either 01726 829379 or office@stevedouble.org.uk.
Additionally, I hold regular, appointment only, advice surgeries across the
constituency. Dates of these can be found at: www.stevedouble.org.uk/events
