Lack of maintenance is rife!

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted every few
years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and hasn't been touched
for about 25 years.

A pub garden I sat in for a pint showed that no-one had taken an interest
since installing a patio heater. The slabs need power washing - the picnic
tables need de-crapping and maintaining.

In the toilet the push down taps either shut off immediately or rune for 10
mins.

At work, no-one replaces failed light bulbs as it now needs a requisition to
be completed and signed by the head of the function. It will then be fixed
within the 7 day service level agreement by the people who wander past it
several time a day and stand around waiting for something to do.

Etc
Etc


Regards

John

On Tue, 2 Aug 2011 22:01:02 +0100, "DerbyBoy" No-one
wrote:

Lack of maintenance is rife!

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted every few
years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and hasn't been touched
for about 25 years.

Look closely at pictures of the elevated railways in New York and
Chicago...

Trouble is it will probably be about 170 years old so "the suits" that
control the money expect it to continue to perform in the next 10
years in the same way as it as has been doing in the last 170, they
have a big financial incentive to do so, and sometimes they are
correct.

A pub garden I sat in for a pint showed that no-one had taken an interest
since installing a patio heater. The slabs need power washing - the picnic
tables need de-crapping and maintaining.



This sort of thing is really expensive. The trouble is the Brewers
won't play fair with the licensees. In an attempt to get a bigger
market share they will sign up a licensee to take (so many) 1,000
pints of beer per week. Then, once the licensee is committed the
brewery will approach the next pub down the road and offer him beer at
half price for a few months. This gets him committed as well. Then the
landlord of the first pub loses money and goes out of business.

All in all this does nothing to increase the demand for beer, but
might get some slimy sales manager a bit closer to his target .

In the toilet the push down taps either shut off immediately or rune for 10
mins.

At work, no-one replaces failed light bulbs as it now needs a requisition to
be completed and signed by the head of the function. It will then be fixed
within the 7 day service level agreement by the people who wander past it
several time a day and stand around waiting for something to do.


This is an H&S issue. Don't forget it is your duty to report defective
or inadequate lights you encounter at work if you don't want to share
responsibility if (for instance) an elderly visitor trips over a
doormat, and busts the head off his femur.

Derek G.

--

This Looks like Finito Ruperto.

"DerbyBoy" No-one writes:

At work, no-one replaces failed light bulbs as it now needs a requisition to
be completed and signed by the head of the function. It will then be fixed
within the 7 day service level agreement by the people who wander past it
several time a day and stand around waiting for something to do.

Someone who used to teach in a small local school told me she had to
sneak around after hours replacing light bulbs, because she wasn't
allowed to do that and the local Council would take years to get round
to it.


--
Windmill, Use t m i l l
@ O n e t e l
. c o m

On Tue, 2 Aug 2011 22:01:02 +0100, "DerbyBoy" No-one
wrote:

Lack of maintenance is rife!

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted every few
years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and hasn't been touched
for about 25 years.

Do It Yourself :-)

--
Frank Erskine

DerbyBoy wrote:

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted every few
years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and hasn't been
touched for about 25 years.

Doesn't it get shaken off regularly by the double decker buses and artic
trailers ramming it?

On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 08:33:35 +0100, Frank Erskine
wrote:

On Tue, 2 Aug 2011 22:01:02 +0100, "DerbyBoy" No-one
wrote:

Lack of maintenance is rife!

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted every few
years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and hasn't been touched
for about 25 years.

Do It Yourself :-)

Wire brush and Dettol. ;-)

Derek G.


--

This Looks like Finito Ruperto.

On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 08:33:35 +0100, Frank Erskine wrote:

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted
every few
years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and hasn't been

touched for about 25 years.

Road lobby starving the railways of business and goverment not being
interested in maintaining the countries infrastucture.

Do It Yourself :-)

Ah, Camerobs "Big Society".

(oo, I like that genuine typo!)

--
Cheers
Dave.

Tim Streater wrote:
In article o.uk,
"Dave Liquorice" wrote:

On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 08:33:35 +0100, Frank Erskine wrote:

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted
every few years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and
hasn't been

touched for about 25 years.

Road lobby starving the railways of business and goverment not being
interested in maintaining the countries infrastucture.

The rail lobby is a few anoraks. The road lobby is everyone else. That's
assuming either lobby can be said to exist. The railways only run
because of a massive subsidy, so they are obviously using a
disproportionate amount of society's resources compared to other methods
of transportation.

and we don't subsidise road construction, maintenance. highway patrols,.
street lights, ?

Windmill wrote:
"DerbyBoy" No-one writes:

At work, no-one replaces failed light bulbs as it now needs a
requisition to be completed and signed by the head of the function.
It will then be fixed within the 7 day service level agreement by
the people who wander past it several time a day and stand around
waiting for something to do.

Someone who used to teach in a small local school told me she had to
sneak around after hours replacing light bulbs, because she wasn't
allowed to do that and the local Council would take years to get round
to it.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2004/mar/27/uknews

--
Adam

"Andy Burns" wrote in message
o.uk...
DerbyBoy wrote:

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted every few
years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and hasn't been
touched for about 25 years.

Doesn't it get shaken off regularly by the double decker buses and artic
trailers ramming it?


Oh yes! they had the same problem with the Forth rail bridge until the
chunks started falling off from a great height and onto pedestrians, ships
and vehicles, H&S were in there like an express train (ha ha) didnt take
them long to start sorting it, mind you it took a few years to get it sorted
they had to cover the bridge in sheets to stop it falling below.

Tim Streater wrote:
That's assuming either lobby can be said to exist. The railways only
run because of a massive subsidy,

The largest use of the railways is rail freight which receives
no public subsidy, is profitable, was why the railways were built
in the first place, and is struggling to expand because of the
restricted infrastructure.

JGH

"Dave Liquorice" wrote in message
ll.co.uk...
On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 08:33:35 +0100, Frank Erskine wrote:

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted
every few
years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and hasn't been

touched for about 25 years.

Road lobby starving the railways of business and goverment not being
interested in maintaining the countries infrastucture.

Do It Yourself :-)

Ah, Camerobs "Big Society".

(oo, I like that genuine typo!)

Camoron?

Jim K

"SS" wrote in message
...

"Andy Burns" wrote in message
o.uk...
DerbyBoy wrote:

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted every few
years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and hasn't been
touched for about 25 years.

Doesn't it get shaken off regularly by the double decker buses and artic
trailers ramming it?


Oh yes! they had the same problem with the Forth rail bridge until the
chunks started falling off from a great height and onto pedestrians, ships
and vehicles, H&S were in there like an express train (ha ha) didnt take
them long to start sorting it, mind you it took a few years to get it
sorted they had to cover the bridge in sheets to stop it falling below.
Hopefully they did a little more than that?!

Jim K

In message
"ARWadsworth" wrote:

Windmill wrote:
"DerbyBoy" No-one writes:

At work, no-one replaces failed light bulbs as it now needs a
requisition to be completed and signed by the head of the function.
It will then be fixed within the 7 day service level agreement by
the people who wander past it several time a day and stand around
waiting for something to do.

Someone who used to teach in a small local school told me she had to
sneak around after hours replacing light bulbs, because she wasn't
allowed to do that and the local Council would take years to get round
to it.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2004/mar/27/uknews

The electrician at work (large supermarket chain) told me that he
is NOT allowed to change plugs on appliances, We had to get a
bloke who drove an 80 mile round trip to supply a new cable for
the vacuum cleaner.

We sell electric plugs and in the past have taken them off the
shelf, but now everything needs a risk assessment for health and
saftey.


--
http://www.stephen.hull.btinternet.co.uk
From the Wirral Peninsula.
Coach painting tips and techniques + Land Rover colour codes
"Whatever is rightly done, however humble, is noble". Henry Royce

On 03/08/2011 11:51, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
Tim Streater wrote:
In article o.uk,
"Dave Liquorice" wrote:

On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 08:33:35 +0100, Frank Erskine wrote:

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted
every few years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and
hasn't been

touched for about 25 years.

Road lobby starving the railways of business and goverment not being
interested in maintaining the countries infrastucture.

The rail lobby is a few anoraks. The road lobby is everyone else.
That's assuming either lobby can be said to exist. The railways only
run because of a massive subsidy, so they are obviously using a
disproportionate amount of society's resources compared to other
methods of transportation.

and we don't subsidise road construction, maintenance. highway patrols,.
street lights, ?

Local roads, pavements, etc. are paid for from council funds and are
used by everyone, be they pedestrian, cyclist or driver. Part of that
money is provided from central government as grants, the rest from
council tax and council charges for services.

Classified roads are paid for from central government.

Total spending on transport as a whole (including trains and buses) is a
fraction of the tax collected from fuel and road fund license.

The rest of the money goes into the general pot, part of which is going
to the local roads, railways, buses, etc.

So no, I would say that road construction and maintenance isn't
subsidised. Highway patrols are just police, like we have everywhere
else in society and street lights are of far more importance to
pedestrians than drivers.

SteveW

On 03/08/2011 12:22, Tim Streater wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Tim Streater wrote:
In article o.uk,
"Dave Liquorice" wrote:
On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 08:33:35 +0100, Frank Erskine wrote:

A metal railway bridge near me used to be blasted and painted
every few years when I was kid - now it is flaking with rust and
hasn't been

touched for about 25 years.

Road lobby starving the railways of business and goverment not being
interested in maintaining the countries infrastucture.
The rail lobby is a few anoraks. The road lobby is everyone else.
That's assuming either lobby can be said to exist. The railways only
run because of a massive subsidy, so they are obviously using a
disproportionate amount of society's resources compared to other
methods of transportation.
and we don't subsidise road construction, maintenance. highway
patrols,. street lights, ?

I thought the point of the road tax was to cover that.

That is what was claimed when it was introduced. However, these days, it
simply goes into central government funds. It is also about £3 billion
short of what is actually spent on roads.

Plus of course
the various taxes on fuel.

Those bring in a lot more to the central government funds.

Colin Bignell

On 03/08/2011 13:52, J.G.Harston wrote:
Tim Streater wrote:
That's assuming either lobby can be said to exist. The railways only
run because of a massive subsidy,

The largest use of the railways is rail freight which receives
no public subsidy, is profitable, was why the railways were built
in the first place, and is struggling to expand because of the
restricted infrastructure.

The amount of money spent on railways per 1000 tonne km carried in
2007-8 was £385.90. For roads, the figure was £48.07.

Colin Bignell

On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 22:20:09 +0100, Nightjar
wrote:

On 03/08/2011 13:52, J.G.Harston wrote:
Tim Streater wrote:
That's assuming either lobby can be said to exist. The railways only
run because of a massive subsidy,

The largest use of the railways is rail freight which receives
no public subsidy, is profitable, was why the railways were built
in the first place, and is struggling to expand because of the
restricted infrastructure.

The amount of money spent on railways per 1000 tonne km carried in
2007-8 was £385.90. For roads, the figure was £48.07.

Would you have a source for that? I believe the figures are usually
expressed per million tonne/km and the the cost appears to be an order
of magnitude higher than some in mainland Europe.

Thanks,

Nick

On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 22:45:40 +0100, Tim Streater
wrote:

In article ,
Nightjar wrote:

On 03/08/2011 13:52, J.G.Harston wrote:
Tim Streater wrote:
That's assuming either lobby can be said to exist. The railways only
run because of a massive subsidy,

The largest use of the railways is rail freight which receives
no public subsidy, is profitable, was why the railways were built
in the first place, and is struggling to expand because of the
restricted infrastructure.

The amount of money spent on railways per 1000 tonne km carried in
2007-8 was £385.90. For roads, the figure was £48.07.

I expect some of that goes to pay the goods train drivers who sit all
day with their train in a siding in Cambridge station. Presumably
waiting for a slot where their train can go south without impeding
passenger traffic. I used to see these frequently from my office window.

Well presumably you can't blame the drivers, who don't actually have
any say in the matter...

Your posting does seem to imply that they are to blame.

--
Frank Erskine

Tim Streater writes:

I expect some of that goes to pay the goods train drivers who sit all
day with their train in a siding in Cambridge station. Presumably
waiting for a slot where their train can go south without impeding
passenger traffic. I used to see these frequently from my office window.

And they seem to sit with a huge diesel idling and creating almost
subsonic noise, noise which if you're unlucky will resonate in some
room cavities and which can be oddly disturbing.


--
Windmill, Use t m i l l
@ O n e t e l
J.R.R. Tolkien: . c o m
All that is gold does not glister / Not all who wander are lost

In article ,
wrote:
The electrician at work (large supermarket chain) told me that he
is NOT allowed to change plugs on appliances, We had to get a
bloke who drove an 80 mile round trip to supply a new cable for
the vacuum cleaner.

A rule obviously written by one with no clue. What is so special about the
'got in bloke' who does the repair?

--
*One of us is thinking about sex... OK, it's me.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Thu, 04 Aug 2011 09:29:14 +0100, "Dave Plowman (News)"
wrote:

In article ,
wrote:
The electrician at work (large supermarket chain) told me that he
is NOT allowed to change plugs on appliances, We had to get a
bloke who drove an 80 mile round trip to supply a new cable for
the vacuum cleaner.

A rule obviously written by one with no clue. What is so special about the
'got in bloke' who does the repair?

He's the Dalai Lama ?

Derek G.

--

This Looks like Finito Ruperto.

"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote in message
...
In article ,
wrote:
The electrician at work (large supermarket chain) told me that he
is NOT allowed to change plugs on appliances, We had to get a
bloke who drove an 80 mile round trip to supply a new cable for
the vacuum cleaner.

A rule obviously written by one with no clue. What is so special about the
'got in bloke' who does the repair?

He's the guy who won the contract by being 5p per hour cheaper :-(

tim

On 04/08/2011 00:43, Nick Odell wrote:
On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 22:20:09 +0100, Nightjar
wrote:

On 03/08/2011 13:52, J.G.Harston wrote:
Tim Streater wrote:
That's assuming either lobby can be said to exist. The railways only
run because of a massive subsidy,

The largest use of the railways is rail freight which receives
no public subsidy, is profitable, was why the railways were built
in the first place, and is struggling to expand because of the
restricted infrastructure.

The amount of money spent on railways per 1000 tonne km carried in
2007-8 was £385.90. For roads, the figure was £48.07.

Would you have a source for that? I believe the figures are usually
expressed per million tonne/km and the the cost appears to be an order
of magnitude higher than some in mainland Europe.

www.taxpayersalliance.com/transportspending.pdf

Page 4

Colin Bignell

In message
"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote:

In article ,
wrote:
The electrician at work (large supermarket chain) told me that he
is NOT allowed to change plugs on appliances, We had to get a
bloke who drove an 80 mile round trip to supply a new cable for
the vacuum cleaner.

A rule obviously written by one with no clue. What is so special
about the 'got in bloke' who does the repair?


The bloke who fixed or supplied the vacuum cleaner works for the
same supermarket but I don't know in what category as he was
wearing the same store uniform as everyone else and not the
official electricians name or logo.

Stephen.

--
http://www.stephen.hull.btinternet.co.uk
From the Wirral Peninsula.
Coach painting tips and techniques + Land Rover colour codes
"Whatever is rightly done, however humble, is noble". Henry Royce

In message
"tim...." wrote:


"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote in message
...
In article ,
wrote:
The electrician at work (large supermarket chain) told me that he
is NOT allowed to change plugs on appliances, We had to get a
bloke who drove an 80 mile round trip to supply a new cable for
the vacuum cleaner.

A rule obviously written by one with no clue. What is so special about the
'got in bloke' who does the repair?

He's the guy who won the contract by being 5p per hour cheaper :-(

tim


There's truth in that statement, its all about cost cutting IMO as
contracts have recently been awarded to cheaper tenders.


Stephen.


--
http://www.stephen.hull.btinternet.co.uk
From the Wirral Peninsula.
Coach painting tips and techniques + Land Rover colour codes
"Whatever is rightly done, however humble, is noble". Henry Royce

On 04/08/2011 17:35, wrote:
In
wrote:


"Dave Plowman wrote in message
...
In ,
wrote:
The electrician at work (large supermarket chain) told me that he
is NOT allowed to change plugs on appliances, We had to get a
bloke who drove an 80 mile round trip to supply a new cable for
the vacuum cleaner.

A rule obviously written by one with no clue. What is so special about the
'got in bloke' who does the repair?

He's the guy who won the contract by being 5p per hour cheaper :-(

tim


There's truth in that statement, its all about cost cutting IMO as
contracts have recently been awarded to cheaper tenders.


Stephen.


like the school that asked for tenders for window cleaning. Accepted
lowest quote without realising that it included only exterior windows.
Cost them a fortune to get the inside windows done.

or

two plumbers talking in local pub.

Savvy plumber: I got that big local authority contract by tendering at
xxx per property.

Naive one: I couldn't make a profit at that price.

Savvy plumber: But I know that 35 percent are non-standard and I can
charge what I like for those.

(I used to deal with a household name civil engineering and building
firm. They quoted below cost for the basic contract but had a team
dealing with all the extras for unforeseen ground conditions, amendments
etc.)

wrote in message
...
In message
"tim...." wrote:


"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote in message
...
In article ,
wrote:
The electrician at work (large supermarket chain) told me that he
is NOT allowed to change plugs on appliances, We had to get a
bloke who drove an 80 mile round trip to supply a new cable for
the vacuum cleaner.

A rule obviously written by one with no clue. What is so special about
the
'got in bloke' who does the repair?

He's the guy who won the contract by being 5p per hour cheaper :-(

tim


There's truth in that statement,

Oh I know there is (that's why I made it).

Used to work for a company that tendered out all of its travel to the agency
who offered the biggest rebate of their booking commission (when such a
thing existed).

Travel costs immediately when up 50% as said travel agency would only make
bookings at full rack rate because rooms/flights/car-hire sold through
discount channels didn't pay any commission.

tim

In message
Hugh - Was Invisible wrote:

On 04/08/2011 17:35, wrote:
In
wrote:


"Dave Plowman wrote in message
...
In ,
wrote:
The electrician at work (large supermarket chain) told me that he
is NOT allowed to change plugs on appliances, We had to get a
bloke who drove an 80 mile round trip to supply a new cable for
the vacuum cleaner.

A rule obviously written by one with no clue. What is so special about the
'got in bloke' who does the repair?

He's the guy who won the contract by being 5p per hour cheaper :-(

tim


There's truth in that statement, its all about cost cutting IMO as
contracts have recently been awarded to cheaper tenders.


Stephen.


like the school that asked for tenders for window cleaning. Accepted
lowest quote without realising that it included only exterior windows.
Cost them a fortune to get the inside windows done.

or

two plumbers talking in local pub.

Savvy plumber: I got that big local authority contract by tendering at
xxx per property.

Naive one: I couldn't make a profit at that price.

Savvy plumber: But I know that 35 percent are non-standard and I can
charge what I like for those.

(I used to deal with a household name civil engineering and building
firm. They quoted below cost for the basic contract but had a team
dealing with all the extras for unforeseen ground conditions, amendments
etc.)

We have the suit/bean counter guy who has come in to try and save
the company money by paying him a million or some such ludicrous
amount, then after a year or two he will leave the company and the
aftermath.

Stephen.


--
http://www.stephen.hull.btinternet.co.uk
From the Wirral Peninsula.
Coach painting tips and techniques + Land Rover colour codes
"Whatever is rightly done, however humble, is noble". Henry Royce

We have the suit/bean counter guy who has come in to try and save
the company money by paying him a million or some such ludicrous
amount, then after a year or two he will leave the company and the
aftermath.

Stephen.



"Whatever is rightly done, however humble, is noble". Henry Royce



.....and people believe this is a profitable business. The only profitable
businesses are those that really add value by taking raw materials and
producing something of higher value. Too many are getting a quick buck from
creating a service need and moving it to themselves.

On Thu, 04 Aug 2011 16:31:32 +0100, Nightjar
wrote:

On 04/08/2011 00:43, Nick Odell wrote:
On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 22:20:09 +0100, Nightjar
wrote:

On 03/08/2011 13:52, J.G.Harston wrote:
Tim Streater wrote:
That's assuming either lobby can be said to exist. The railways only
run because of a massive subsidy,

The largest use of the railways is rail freight which receives
no public subsidy, is profitable, was why the railways were built
in the first place, and is struggling to expand because of the
restricted infrastructure.

The amount of money spent on railways per 1000 tonne km carried in
2007-8 was £385.90. For roads, the figure was £48.07.

Would you have a source for that? I believe the figures are usually
expressed per million tonne/km and the the cost appears to be an order
of magnitude higher than some in mainland Europe.

www.taxpayersalliance.com/transportspending.pdf

Page 4

Thanks. Makes jolly interesting reading.

All the numbers in the document come from verifiable government
sources. Unfortunately they are all different government sources and
aren't joined up in any way. What's happened here is that the analyst
has taken the total amount of taxpayer input to the railways and
divided it amongst the the total number of freight tonne/kms carried
and then taken the taxpayer input into roads and done the same there.
Then, and quite separately and I'm sure without any intention to
mislead, they have taken the same total amounts of taxpayer inputs and
divided it amongst passenger/kms instead. Clearly, the whole pot can't
be divided in it's entirety into freight and then divided again in its
entirety into passengers so something must be wrong and I'd suggest
it's all wrong.

Sorry to have butted in: I was just flicking through the rant on my
way to something else and those numbers gave me a vision of a goods
train chugging south with the driver throwing handfuls of twenty-pound
notes out of the window and since those numbers are so spectacular I
guessed that something must be awry.

Nick

Snip

He's the guy who won the contract by being 5p per hour cheaper :-(

There's truth in that statement, its all about cost cutting IMO as
contracts have recently been awarded to cheaper tenders.

like the school that asked for tenders for window cleaning. Accepted
lowest quote without realising that it included only exterior windows.
Cost them a fortune to get the inside windows done.

You mean they didn't read the quotes properly.

two plumbers talking in local pub.

Savvy plumber: I got that big local authority contract by tendering at
xxx per property.

Naive one: I couldn't make a profit at that price.

Savvy plumber: But I know that 35 percent are non-standard and I can
charge what I like for those.

The local authority didn't read the quote properly. And they should be
writing the contract.

(I used to deal with a household name civil engineering and building
firm. They quoted below cost for the basic contract but had a team
dealing with all the extras for unforeseen ground conditions,
amendments etc.)

You mean *you* didn't read the quote properly. :-)

Sorry I wasn't clear. I did not contract with the company. I had other
dealings with them. Making profits out of amendments etc. is or at least
was pretty standard.

On 04/08/2011 23:09, Nick Odell wrote:
On Thu, 04 Aug 2011 16:31:32 +0100, Nightjar
wrote:

On 04/08/2011 00:43, Nick Odell wrote:
On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 22:20:09 +0100, Nightjar
wrote:

On 03/08/2011 13:52, J.G.Harston wrote:
Tim Streater wrote:
That's assuming either lobby can be said to exist. The railways only
run because of a massive subsidy,

The largest use of the railways is rail freight which receives
no public subsidy, is profitable, was why the railways were built
in the first place, and is struggling to expand because of the
restricted infrastructure.

The amount of money spent on railways per 1000 tonne km carried in
2007-8 was £385.90. For roads, the figure was £48.07.

Would you have a source for that? I believe the figures are usually
expressed per million tonne/km and the the cost appears to be an order
of magnitude higher than some in mainland Europe.

www.taxpayersalliance.com/transportspending.pdf

Page 4

Thanks. Makes jolly interesting reading.

All the numbers in the document come from verifiable government
sources. Unfortunately they are all different government sources and
aren't joined up in any way. What's happened here is that the analyst
has taken the total amount of taxpayer input to the railways and
divided it amongst the the total number of freight tonne/kms carried
and then taken the taxpayer input into roads and done the same there.
Then, and quite separately and I'm sure without any intention to
mislead, they have taken the same total amounts of taxpayer inputs and
divided it amongst passenger/kms instead. Clearly, the whole pot can't
be divided in it's entirety into freight and then divided again in its
entirety into passengers so something must be wrong and I'd suggest
it's all wrong.

I am aware of the shortcomings of the figures, as presented. I suspect,
from my own problems in pinning them down, due to any hard data on how
to split the expenditure accurately. However, they do show that, although
road and rail get similar amounts spent on them, the expenditure on roads
is significantly less per unit km carried, which makes it better value
for money.


Sorry to have butted in: I was just flicking through the rant on my
way to something else and those numbers gave me a vision of a goods
train chugging south with the driver throwing handfuls of twenty-pound
notes out of the window

Probably heading North, then running out of notes, given that London
and the SE get the lion's share of transport expenditu

http://www.campaignforhsr.com/press-...don-south-east

and since those numbers are so spectacular I
guessed that something must be awry.

Colin Bignell

In message
"DerbyBoy" No-one wrote:




We have the suit/bean counter guy who has come in to try and save
the company money by paying him a million or some such ludicrous
amount, then after a year or two he will leave the company and the
aftermath.


....and people believe this is a profitable business. The only profitable
businesses are those that really add value by taking raw materials and
producing something of higher value. Too many are getting a quick buck from
creating a service need and moving it to themselves.

Seems to be the norm now, a kind of asset stripping process.

Stphen.

--
http://www.stephen.hull.btinternet.co.uk
From the Wirral Peninsula.
Coach painting tips and techniques + Land Rover colour codes
"Whatever is rightly done, however humble, is noble". Henry Royce

In message
Huge wrote:

On 2011-08-04, wrote:

We have the suit/bean counter guy who has come in to try and save
the company money by paying him a million or some such ludicrous
amount, then after a year or two he will leave the company and the
aftermath.

Ah, a bungie consultant.

Or ...

Q: Why are consultants like seagulls?

A: Because they have big bills and hover around squawking at you, before
crapping on you and flying off, leaving you with a mess.

(Amusingly, while Googling for this joke, I found a firm called ...
Seagull Consultants!)

I like that comparison! LOL

Stephen.


--
http://www.stephen.hull.btinternet.co.uk
From the Wirral Peninsula.
Coach painting tips and techniques + Land Rover colour codes
"Whatever is rightly done, however humble, is noble". Henry Royce

Derek G. wrote:
A rule obviously written by one with no clue. What is so special about the
'got in bloke' who does the repair?

He's the Dalai Lama ?

I've met him, he's a fairly down-to-earth bloke and does know
how to change a plug.

JGH

On 07/08/2011 14:01, J.G.Harston wrote:
Derek G. wrote:

He's the Dalai Lama ?

I've met him, he's a fairly down-to-earth bloke and does know
how to change a plug.

You met the Dalai Lama and talked about changing plugs???

Andy

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember Andy Champ
saying something like:

He's the Dalai Lama ?

I've met him, he's a fairly down-to-earth bloke and does know
how to change a plug.

You met the Dalai Lama and talked about changing plugs???

The medieval ******** that was Tibet probably didn't have any plugs,
save those in the DL's palace.

On Thu, 4 Aug 2011 03:44:12 GMT, lid
(Windmill) wrote:

Tim Streater writes:

I expect some of that goes to pay the goods train drivers who sit all
day with their train in a siding in Cambridge station. Presumably
waiting for a slot where their train can go south without impeding
passenger traffic. I used to see these frequently from my office window.

And they seem to sit with a huge diesel idling and creating almost
subsonic noise, noise which if you're unlucky will resonate in some
room cavities and which can be oddly disturbing.

I used to live near a siding where they parked trains at night. It
did keep me awake :-(
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