Close the roads so kids can play.
Close the roads so kids can play.
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Discussion

colonel c

Original Poster:

8,057 posts

269 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
Tories carrying on where Labour left off.

The Telegraph said:
Cars could be banned from residential roads to allow children to play

Cars could be banned from residential roads to allow children to play out in the street, a heath minister has suggested.

Anne Milton said that she had been looking at a scheme in operation in South America, where roads were closed to traffic on Sundays.


She told MPs that the idea, which began in Colombia, could help tackle childhood obesity.


During a debate in Westminster Hall, Mrs Milton said: "On Sundays, they close certain streets so that everybody can play in them. That is an outstanding idea.


"Before constituents email to complain about their streets closing, I should say that I accept it would not work everywhere. It could, however, work in some places."


Mrs Milton said that the latest Department of Health figures showed that 28 per cent of children aged between two and 10 in England were overweight or obese, along with 61 per cent of adults.

A quarter of 10 and 11 year olds were obese, putting them at risk from conditions such as diabetes.

Ministers are due to set out a strategy for tackling obesity by the summer.

A spokesman for the AA said that caution needed to be taken to ensure that motorists were not inconvenienced by road closures.

He added: “It is a possibility that local authorities could close roads to allow children to play, but it could cause problems for residents who may need to get out of that road, particularly shift workers or someone who is a small business owner who may be on call.

“It would need close consultation with people who live in that street so that they could go about their business.”

Mrs Milton called for a more coordinated approach between Whitehall departments to tackle childhood obesity.

She said: "We have to facilitate and help more people to want to lose weight and stay at a healthy weight.

“The truth is that no single solution will make a difference; the issue is about using all the ideas raised in this debate to turn round the supertanker."
story



Caulkhead

4,938 posts

187 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
When did labour plan to do this?

Shuvi Tupya

24,460 posts

277 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
Why not just make them do sports at school?

It worked in my day..

Failing that, ban school runs in cars and make kids walk/run/ride to school.

thinfourth2

32,414 posts

234 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
Close the roads so kids can play.

Close the roads so cyclists can play


Why can't we close the roads so motorists can play


Oh yeah we are planet killing scum

Pothole

34,367 posts

312 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
"The truth is that no single solution will make a difference; the issue is about using all the ideas raised in this debate to turn round the supertanker."

WHICH BIT OF 'IDEA' AND 'SUGGESTION' IS PROVING DIFFICULT FOR ALL YOU SENSATIONALIST RIGHTEOUS INDIGNATION JUNKIES?

jmorgan

36,010 posts

314 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
Bit about this on the BBC news this morning.

When you have parents driving the kids several hundred yards to the bus stop to go to school, it ain't going to work.

Shuvi Tupya

24,460 posts

277 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
Pothole said:
"The truth is that no single solution will make a difference; the issue is about using all the ideas raised in this debate to turn round the supertanker."

WHICH BIT OF 'IDEA' AND 'SUGGESTION' IS PROVING DIFFICULT FOR ALL YOU SENSATIONALIST RIGHTEOUS INDIGNATION JUNKIES?
Chill Winston! we are just putting forward our own idea's smile

Parrot of Doom

23,075 posts

264 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
[redacted]

Pothole

34,367 posts

312 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
Shuvi Tupya said:
Pothole said:
"The truth is that no single solution will make a difference; the issue is about using all the ideas raised in this debate to turn round the supertanker."

WHICH BIT OF 'IDEA' AND 'SUGGESTION' IS PROVING DIFFICULT FOR ALL YOU SENSATIONALIST RIGHTEOUS INDIGNATION JUNKIES?
Chill Winston! we are just putting forward our own idea's smile
complete with spurious apostrophes, I see.

Shay HTFC

3,588 posts

219 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
I can't see the problem?

Why should cars be able to rule supreme over our neighbourhoods at the expense of other things?

I like driving as much as the next person, but can appreciate that having cars dominating our neighbourhoods may not exactly be the best thing in the grand scheme of things.
Why not reclaim the streets for a bit of pedestrian use? Kids can ride their bikes, or kick a ball around without worry. Stick in a 5 mph limit so people can still get out in cars, but stops them being the 'dominant force' on the roads for that time.

Crazy idea for PH to understand, but its a potentially good one imo.

Vipers

33,514 posts

258 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
So when I get called out for a diving emergency, I will have to tell the duty doctor, "Sorry doc, can't get my car out, kids playing in the street".

Yes bloody fantastic idea. Let the fat bd kiddlewinks WALK to the PARK and play there, oh silly me, they will be closed to kids for some other event.




smile

Pothole

34,367 posts

312 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
Vipers said:
So when I get called out for a diving emergency, I will have to tell the duty doctor, "Sorry doc, can't get my car out, kids playing in the street".

Yes bloody fantastic idea. Let the fat bd kiddlewinks WALK to the PARK and play there, oh silly me, they will be closed to kids for some other event.




smile
no, you'd be saying: 'sorry Doc, I didn't plan very well, so left my car blocked in by the closed streets.'

It's not going to happen anyway.

thinfourth2

32,414 posts

234 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
jmorgan said:
Bit about this on the BBC news this morning.

When you have parents driving the kids several hundred yards to the bus stop to go to school, it ain't going to work.
Banning the daily wail would improve kids fitness as it might reduce the PEADO threat

Pothole

34,367 posts

312 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
Guam said:
Pothole said:
o, you'd be saying: 'sorry Doc, I didn't plan very well, so left my car blocked in by the closed streets.'

It's not going to happen anyway.
Yeah Right so what will we do then? Build millions of garages away from residential areas, last time I looked those houses with parking are typically drives attached to houses.

Another piece of touchy feely lunacy, by people who are out of touch with the real world.

Muttleys chance of this happening, interesting to see how many people buy into any load of bks that these type of politicians espouse because its "for the greatetr good"

Got a fat kid? then take parental responsibility, turn the Xbox off, ban fast food, stop them getting driven to school, etc etc etc.


Or alternatively accept we live in the dying embers of a free society and shut the fk up!

Why should some loons, prevent me from spending my free time how I please because they arent mature enough to take their kids welfare seriously and control what they eat?
it's not going to happen. It's an idea. It will be looked at, found impractical and binned. YOU HAVE BELIEVED THE HYPE AND REACTED EXACTLY AS THE MEDIA WANTED YOU TO. Who's the 'loon' now?

Pothole

34,367 posts

312 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
How many other pieces of government policy have been changed by voicing opinions on this forum?

Silver

4,373 posts

256 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
This is a non-story. Someone has said they think it could be a good thing and made a tenuous link to child obesity then the media have leapt on it with the usual scaremongering phrases 'cars could be banned'.

jmorgan

36,010 posts

314 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
thinfourth2 said:
jmorgan said:
Bit about this on the BBC news this morning.

When you have parents driving the kids several hundred yards to the bus stop to go to school, it ain't going to work.
Banning the daily wail would improve kids fitness as it might reduce the PEADO threat
I think that is the excuse used when they try to justify it.

I can walk to the bus stop around here, where they drop the kids off, in around four or five minutes. It is a small estate, at dropping off and picking up time the bus stop is full of cars whilst the coach has to maneuver around them and the road is blocked. lazygititus I think.

V88Dicky

7,373 posts

213 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
Kids in my street are oblivious to the cars anyway. Kicking their footballs off peoples' cars despite the fact that hundreds of acres of empty field and woods are only 200 yards away.

When I 'questioned' one of the lads fathers about why his son is always playing football in the street, he explained that 'there could be anyone over those fields'. Ah, thats alright then, carry on kicking the ball off peoples cars then. rolleyes

Make the fat little barstards do sport at school, at least 3 times a week.

RemainAllHoof

80,136 posts

312 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
There are loads of playing fields. Why not use them? Oh, that's right, because the kids would rather be playing on their Xbox.

Streps

2,457 posts

196 months

Sunday 8th May 2011
quotequote all
Just another one disconnected from the real world.
Not really surprised.