Clearing the pavements

[Poppy]

This is from a general email from Maureen Child today - I hope there's no objection to it being shown on here too. I can't figure out how to post the poster she refers too, I'm afraid!

Dear All

This forwarded attachment is intended mostly for Portobello constituents, although everyone is welcome to join in, or take up the idea for your own neighbourhood.

The *star* local response to my last email is from a Bath Street resident, Paul, who went out and cleared the snow from the pavements one side of his street yesterday and is now proposing to organise an 'ice breaking' session over a wider area in Portobello on Saturday morning.

Paul did the attached poster today and is putting it around the Portobello area this afternoon.

I've been doing all I can to support Paul's efforts today and make sure it can happen, and safely. I checked with the Council today, and we are hoping they will be able to supply grit, at least. We are proposing to take a bit of sand off the beach otherwise, which worked on Bath Street, so should work elsewhere.

We are looking for volunteers for a 1-2 hours starting 9.30am, meeting at the foot of Bath Street, as the poster says. You DO have to be able-bodied and come well kitted-out with spades or snow shovels gloves, boots etc. And it will be at your own risk. It is an urban myth that you would be held liable if anyone slipped on the cleared parts of the street, but we are trying our level best to prevent any more of that happening on these streets - at least, that's the intention.

On Saturday morning, we are proposing to do (for a start!)

Kings Road
Bridge Street Area
Bath Street
Regent Street
Marlborough Street
Bellfield Street
Pittville Street
John Street
James Street

We may find we have to spread the grit first then getting down to shifting it later, once it's loosened up. The forecast for Friday night is pretty low temperatures. The Bath Street pavement is still loosened up, I'm told, so it does work.

[rapunzell]

If someone grits a route from my door to the beach they can have a freshly-baked chocolate cake. Ok, it was worth a try...

[SoupDragon]

I noticed council workmen clearing part of the High Street yesterday.

If it had been any other time I would have roused the family to help with the shovelling but we are all booked for shifting furniture and clearing my dad's flat this weekend

[Lambie]

Hello Everyone and thanks to Suzanne for pointing me in this direction.

If enough of us get out there and we've enough shovels and buckets and brooms we can really make a difference to the safety of our pavements.

From the map I count 14 roads that run up from the Prom. Bath street and Kings Road are the longest at .2 of a mile. If 1 man cleared 1 side of Bath street in 2 hours we can assume that 4 people would clear both sides in 1 hour. That's a little generous on the time and my maths is not great but it's a starting point approximate. Considering that most of the rest of the streets are much shorter I think that 50 volunteers could clear all the streets perpendicular to the high street and most that run parallel too in a couple of hours. It's an ambitious and optimistic goal but it's one worth aiming for.

Hope to meet you all down on the beach in the morning.

paul.

[Poppy]

[Poppy]

[rapunzell]

[Silver Surfer]

[rapunzell]

[Bob Jefferson]

[Bob Jefferson]

A bit late, but here's the poster for posterity:

[Bob Jefferson]

[Epykat]

[Lizzie]

[Bob Jefferson]