It's very busy now - what is it going to be like in 10 years' time?
It's very busy now - what is it going to be like in 10 years' time?
Fix our City's roads, move freight to bypass
Have you noticed that the city roads are getting busier lately with vehicles? State Highway 3 is so busy with heavy freight transport and light vehicles flowing daily to and from Taranaki, there needs to be a bypass for thistraffic to avoid our city inner roads.
It's very busy now - what is it going to be like in 10 years' time? I have noticed progressive cities throughout New Zealand have bypasses or expressways in place or proposed.
The Whanganui Chronicle headline today, "Whanganui to Wellington in less than two hours" per highway upgrading, funding announcement is great news for Whanganui to do business for trade, commerce, tourism etc. That goes for Taranaki too.
Next time you are feeding the ducks at Virginia Lake, take note that more than likely it's Taranaki moving freight to places south, through our inner city streets.
Mayor Hamish mentions he is particularly glad to have the rubbish road between Otaki and Levin upgrade in the highway funding mix. I agree with that 100 per cent. However, why is it that our roads around the city are crap?
Check out the roads that are uneven, in poor top-seal condition and full of uneven sewer cast-iron lids, and rural roads still unsealed after 80 years, the list goes on. Don't tell me there is no money - there is billions of dollars on offer from the Beehive. Please don't put it in the too-hard basket.
Listen to children With reference to the world climate change crisis and the heartfelt cries for immediate effective action by youthful Greta Thunberg, I suspect that young activist's pleas and offered solutions are easily dismissed by those in key positions to make a difference.
I'm pondering that because she may be viewed as largely still a child that many adults in pivotal roles might reason along such lines as what does a child know, it's not as simple as her naivety suggests, too emotional etc.
Have such politicians and others dragging the chain considered that the solutions to this immediate crisis are actually just as simple as Greta Thunberg puts forward and that it is fear that is at the core of the ongoing inaction?
Fear from governments of loss of votes, power and national wealth and fear of what we all know as being otherwise inevitable in the head-in-sand behaviour of many.
The naivety of a child is a beautiful thing because a child, in not perhaps understanding the ways of the world, is also not caught up in the vested interests mentioned above that have adults clinging grimly to such very valued entities, the very things that are the weighted ball at the end of the chain stifling any serious, real or focused, rational action to do anything about our pivotally balanced planet.
Adults are not delivering. I think we need to listen now to the children and with due humility and respect. I believe we have it in our power to reverse current ever-increasing trends threatening us and our planet and in a shortish time-frame, but not as per the status quo. Are we willing to let go? There is a world to gain. PAUL BABER Aramoho
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