Sir, With regard to Friday’s article, Safety fears spell market’s end, can I say that, as someone who has had a stall at the fountain in Market Street, St Andrews, I can’t recall a single episode of a problem with traffic.
I never felt in any more danger than that associated with crossing any street in St Andrews.
It is interesting that the main motive for the council’s action is that they would be liable in the case of any accident now that they have been made aware of the potential safety problem.
I would like to make them aware of the potential safety problem of allowing cars and pedestrians to freely intermingle within the boundary of St Andrews, as this will make them liable for every accident in the town. So, the only possible action the council can take is to ban either cars or pedestrians completely. Take your choice.
As a compromise, I suggest cars only be allowed between 8am and 9am and 5pm and 6pm. The rest of the time the town would be a pedestrian area and a very peaceful one at that.
Motorists, of course, would have to be in and sit in their cars outwith the pedestrian hours. I haven’t worked out what to do with cyclists yet!
If the council continue with their ultra-healthy and guaranteed safe decision they would have to change the name of Market Street to avoid prosecution under the Trade Descriptions Act as no markets will be allowed there including the Lammas Fair, I presume.
“Shopping Street” is a bit boring so can we have some more fitting suggestions from Courier readers?
I quite fancy calling it “Poole’s Folly”.
Ken Greenaway. Culross House, Torr of Kedlock, Cupar.
How can I stop these calls?
Sir, I wonder if there has been any real effort on the part of the powers-that-be to deal with the ever-increasing number of “cold” telephone calls one gets these days?
I am registered with the Telephone Referencing Service and yet, in the last six days I have received no fewer than 19 cold calls, that I am aware of, despite being registered.
This could be a greater number because if I am out I do not know whether anyone has cold-called. I leave my answering machine on all the time and never answer a call until I know who it is.
As cold-callers hang up when they hear the answering machine, I can thus avoid wasting my time.
Now I dial 1471 after a cold call, in order to establish what number the call is from, initially mainly out of curiosity.
Of the 19 I have referred to, only one had withheld their number. Of the 18 numbers I do have, apart from two starting 0800 which I know to be business prefixes, I do not recognise any of the numerical prefixes although I have a website which I can refer to which tracks them down to a town or city.
In these days of highly sophisticated electronic technology, there must surely be some way of stopping these companies or organisations bothering me? Given all the numbers I am collecting, there must be some way of getting back to them and stopping them? Someone in the system must have, or certainly should have, an answer.
Mona Clark. 9 Millbay Terrace, Dundee.
The mother of all games…
Sir, With all the negative news reported about Dundee recently and with the city’s penchant and skill for producing computer games, I thought the city of Dundee itself might suggest a game: The Ever Changing Waterfront Maze. The aim of the game is to reach the Nethergate by car without always ending up in Fife.
There are hazards, of course. Meet anyone with an ASBO and you must start all over again, but the maze will have altered totally, with even more buildings demolished and dust storms obscuring your way. This will increase with each new start.
If you ask a local for directions, you will not understand a word and must take the next left turn, even if it means plunging into the Tay.
If you are a resident from another town you may find it impossible to play, and with the Deep Sea gone and no chance of a wonderful fish supper, what is the point anyway?
However, you will discover that you have developed a profound admiration for Dundee drivers, who traverse this maze with ease almost every day, while waiting most patiently for the V&A.
Leslie Milligan. 18B Myrtlehall Gardens, Dundee.
Money wasted and no legacy
Sir, It was with some amusement that I read on Friday about how money was not to be wasted building purpose-built venues for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow but rather existing facilities were to be revamped for the games.
Barry Buddon was the main focus yet my understanding is that the structures built for the shooting events are to be torn down after the games resulting in zero legacy for shooting in Scotland following the games. £30 million was wasted at Woolwich in London for the Olympic Games and many more are now to be wasted at Barry Buddon.
Can someone tell me where the legacy for shooters will actually be following the games, as it will generate interest but there will be a lack of facilities to foster that initial interest?
Mike Hibberd. 9 Meadowbank Gardens, Wellbank.