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Metropolitan LA cannot look at pickets threat

19th April 1986, Page 12
19th April 1986
Page 12
Page 12, 19th April 1986 — Metropolitan LA cannot look at pickets threat
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

• Environmental legislation cannot take account of residents' anxiety about picketing of the TNT UK depot, Metropolitan Licensing Authority Ronald Ashford ruled last week when he granted the company's application for an additional 30 vehicles at its Brentwood, Essex, depot.

Over 20 representations were made against the application, but only six were held to be valid.

Michael Cunningham, for the company, said TNT is concerned about environmental matters. Time and money is invested in training drivers, and vehicles of an exceptionally high specification have been acquired to reduce noise and pollution.

Two residents said they were concerned about the road safety aspects and noise emanating from the company's operations. They agreed they were more concerned about noise in the surrounding residential area and the village rather than from the depot itself.

Robert Hayday, general manager, said the additional vehicles were required for the movement of newspapers.

It would be an overnight operation with newspapers being brought into the depot by artics and then transhipped to Volkswagen LT45 4.6-tonne GVW vans for distribution.

He and his management team wanted anyone with a complaint to contact them on site and the residents were welcome at the depot to discuss any problem that concerned them.

He had issued a directive that no vehicles stopped at the shops in the village. However he had since received a letter from the residents' association indicating that they were against such a ban.

He had also encouraged all drivers to turn right at a nearby bridge to avoid going through the village and normally he would have the vehicles leaving the depot at staggered times.

However, the police in monitoring the picketing problem had directed all vehicles to turn left and go through the village in convoys of not less than five vehicles.

John Howorth, group fleet transport administrator, said the vans had been equipped with the turbocharged engine used in the Audi 100 car, with thermostatically controlled cold start mechanisms and roller shutter doors.

Ashford granted the application with a condition that 27 of the vehicles must not exceed 7.5 tonnes. He said he did not believe there would be any increase in nuisance.


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