Council Reports At the inquest on his death in April, the Coroner recorded that John had been suffering from an industrial disease. This was caused by his exposure to asbestos as a young technician with BT. The resulting asbestosis took decades to appear and it eventually caused his lungs to fail. John’s passing has left a vacancy on the Community Council, and if you are interested in becoming a Councillor by co-option, please let me know. Councillor Alan Hayman Myland Access Committee Welcome to the first report from this new committee, and I will try and explain why we changed, what we aim to do and why it does matter! Firstly, our remit has got larger. We will be concerned with all forms of active travel – buses, cycling, (including scooters and electric bikes) and walking. All three types of travel are sustainable – in other words they are able to be continued economically, socially and environmentally without damaging any aspect of our lives. Given the current climate emergency, which is recognised to exist, it appears to be a sensible course of action to have a committee looking at encouraging and supporting all aspects of sustainable travel. Regarding buses, we are currently looking at the possibility of introducing a Myland “hopper” bus running regularly between locations such as the railway station, the hospital, supermarkets and the football stadium, for example. We are also considering “Dial a Bus” services, which are currently running in parts of Chelmsford and Braintree as part of a trial. They are a kind of a cross between a bus and a taxi, and do not have regular routes or timetables. The service is used by means of an app and may be shared with others doing a similar journey. I have also noticed recently with changes to our bus services occurring quite frequently, that some of the bus stops need timetables provided or updated. We also hope to create a dialogue with the several different bus companies serving Myland, in order to quickly iron out any problems. Cycling in Myland has always been fairly popular and the cycling track at the new Colchester Sports Park at the Northern Gateway – an all-weather floodlit cycle track, the largest in the East of England - is extremely welcome. However when you return home, the facilities are extremely poor. Either cycling on the pavement, or no consideration of cyclists in the design and road layout. This lack of good infrastructure is entirely the doing of Essex Highways and 9
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