NIGHTMARE parking problems
February 1, 2009
NIGHTMARE parking problems could come to an end as plans are put forward to build a commuter car park.
People living in Theydon Bois have not been able to park outside their own front door because of restrictions introduced to prevent commuters leaving cars in the area.
And commuters have been forced to drive into work rather than use the tube because there is nowhere to park their cars.
But a man from Epping could solve all of their problems with his plans to construct up to 280 spaces next to Theydon Bois tube station.
George Dilloway owns the former Old Forester Club land off Abridge road and decided the area would be ideal for a car park.
He said: “The council haven’t provided any options for car parking in the area and at the moment about 60 people are already dumping their cars there illegally everyday because there is nowhere else for them to go with all the double yellow lines. It’s a major problem.”
Mr Dilloway is hoping that Transport for London will agree to open up the entrance to the tube station to make the car park even more accessible for commuters.
He added: “If they expanded the entrance it could be on the same side of the road as the car park.
“It would also help ease the commuter problem in other areas like Epping where parking is also a nightmare. If you’re not there by 6.30am there’s no spaces left.”
The plans were welcomed by residents.
Clive Cooper from Theydon Park Road is unable to park his car outside his home because of yellow line restrictions introduced to stop commuter parking.
He said: “The restrictions prevent us from parking on our road between 10am and 11am. But that means I can’t leave my car there during the day because I can’t very well come home and move it during that time.
“If the car park solves the problem and means that these restrictions can be lifted then it’s a good thing.
“I can’t get the train to work at the moment and have to take the car, it’s nonsense. It’s affecting everyone and has caused so much disruption. Something definitely needs to be done.”
Alison Harvey from Cloverly Road in Ongar used to park in Theydon Bois before the restrictions were put in place.
But she was forced to use a friend’s driveway in Epping to get to work when the yellow lines were introduced.
She said: “I’m on maternity leave now but before I left I couldn’t find anywhere to park and had to use my friend’s drive. I didn’t want to do that forever and I was looking into somewhere else to park when I go back to work.
“It will be great if they do make a car park and will certainly put my mind at rest.”
But not everyone welcomed the plans.
A spokeswoman from Theydon Bois Action Group (TBAG) said: “The business plan for the car park is unsustainable, the car park would be of no benefit to local people, it is too far from the station and it will cause traffic problems on a dangerous stretch of the Abridge Road.
“It will not alleviate parking problems in the village as commuters will continue to park for free on our roads.
“It would have to be lit and the access road stretching uphill will cause a significant loss of openness on the Green Belt.”
People have until January 20 to submit an opinion on the car park application.
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LPG Automotive Tanks that May leak LPG Recalled
February 1, 2009
There has been a national recall of more than 13,500 LPG automotive tanks that may leak liquid LPG.
Axiom-brand hand taps on the tanks may have been fitted with an undersized O-rings, leading to the potential leaks.
The problem affects tanks fitted between November last year and February this year across the country.
LPG cylinder manufacturer APA is attempting to contact all motorists with the affected product.
In the meantime motorists have been advised not to refill the LPG tank, to avoid parking in a confined space and to contact their installer to have the affected part replaced.
Source: http://arafura.axxs.org
Tags: EU, park, leaksRelated Posts:
The Steel Revitalization Plans in China
January 29, 2009
It is reported that the State Council has worked out the steel revitalization plans, which focus on controlling the whole volume, washing out the obsolete capacity and encouraging technical innovation and merger & acquisition to bail out the slumping domestic steel industry.
Mr Wang Yifang Board chairman of Hebei Steel Group said even though the released plan has not cover detailed regulations, it will provides timely help for the development of the steel enterprises in Hebei province, the largest steel production base in China. To the large-sized steel mills, the plan means low cost expansion.
As one of the largest steel complexes in China, Hebei Steel Group has enhanced its place in steel industry since it was founded, and became the national major supportive enterprise.
As per local steel assistance plan, total crude steel capacity would be controlled within 80 million tons by 2020. In order to realize the goal, the province has to concentrate the quality steel resources by promoting the progress of M&As. Most experts believe that the steel revitalization policy will lay a solid floor for the further development of Hebei steel industry.
According to the plan special funds will be allocated from the central budget to encourage technological advancement of the sector, readjustment of products mix and improvements of product quality
As one of the pillar industries in Hebei province, the steel industry contributes more than 25% of the provincial total industrial profits in recent years. However, it still lacks of competitiveness since most local produced products are primary one, with few high value-added and high-tech contained products.
The local government should draw some supportive policies in line with the steel revitalization plan to encourage the technologic innovation. Only in this way, can Hebei province form high quality vanadium and titanium, construction steel and slabs production lines with high value added products, and end the extensive develop pattern in local steel industry.
Source: China Steel net.com
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Iron Ore Price May Decline By 50 % in 2009 in China
January 29, 2009
Iron ore contract prices may fall as much as 50 percent this year amid a slowdown in China, the world’s biggest consumer of the raw material, according to Australia’s richest woman and mining magnate Gina Rinehart.
“We’re hearing 30 percent, 40 percent, 50 percent discounts to last year’s contract price,” Rinehart, who controls closely held Hancock Prospecting Pty, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. That compares with the average forecast of a 30 percent cut in a Bloomberg survey of 11 analysts last week.
Chinese steelmakers are likely to win their first cut in contract prices in seven years as a global recession curbs demand for commodities. Rinehart’s partner, Rio Tinto Group, the world’s second-biggest exporter of the ore, and Baosteel Group Corp. began talks this month to set prices from April 1, according to two company executives who asked not to be identified.
“The economy in China is very sad right now,” Rinehart said. China’s economy may rebound soon and “ultimately, prices will rise,” she said. Hancock isn’t party to the talks.
Hancock Prospecting is partner with Rio in the Hope Downs iron ore project in Western Australia. Hancock is also seeking to develop the Roy Hill iron ore mine in Western Australia.
Rio, BHP Billiton Ltd., and Brazil’s Cia. Vale do Rio Doce, which handle three-quarters of traded iron ore, sell the steelmaking material under long-term contracts to China’s 20 biggest mills and traders at agreed annual prices.
China may be asking for a price cut of between 40 percent and 45 percent, Macquarie Group Ltd. analysts led by London-based Jim Lennon said in a Jan. 12 report. UBS AG analysts have forecast a decline of 40 percent. A 30 percent cut would still be the second- highest price on record.
Source: China Steel Net.com
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Industrial output grows less than 2007
January 25, 2009
CHINA’S industrial output rose 12.9 percent year on year in 2008, or 5.6 percentage points less than the previous year, the National Bureau of Statistics said yesterday.
Output climbed 5.7 percent in December, up slightly from the 5.4-percent growth rate in November. However, the December figure was 11.7 percentage points lower than a year earlier, and it was also much lower than any of the first 10 months of 2008.
Output of state-owned enterprises and shareholding companies rose 9.1 percent and 15 percent, respectively. These figures include companies with annual sales of at least 5 million yuan (US$731,283), the point at which companies in China are classified as medium to large-scale.
Output of companies funded by foreign investors or investors from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan rose 9.9 percent.
Heavy industrial output rose 13.2 percent, while that of light industry gained 12.3 percent.
The bureau’s data showed aggregate industrial profits hit 2.4 trillion yuan in the first 11 months of last year, up 4.9 percent compared with the same period in 2007. However, the growth rate fell a sharp 31.8 percentage points from a year earlier.
Of 39 industries surveyed, 31 reported year-on-year profit growth. The five fastest growth rates were recorded by petroleum and natural gas extraction, coal mining, transport equipment manufacturing, chemical production and metals processing.
Industrial production growth slowed along with a weakening global economy, which reduced market prices as well as domestic and foreign demand, analysts said.
“Weakening demand, especially overseas, was a major cause of China’s slowdown, as more than 30 percent of GDP comes from trade-related industries,” said Tang Min, deputy secretary of the China Development Research Foundation.
He forecast the economy would begin to improve in the second or third quarter as a national 4-trillion-yuan stimulus package took effect and boosted domestic demand for industrial products.
Ma Jiantang, the bureau’s head, called the December rebound a “positive sign” for China’s industrial production.
“The growth rate of industrial output was 0.3 percentage point higher than November. Small as it is, it’s an important change in industrial activity” and could help China’s economy to rebound, he said.
Ma said 16 of the 39 industries surveyed had shown a month-on-month rise in output growth.
A survey conducted by the bureau earlier this month showed steel, coal, ferrous metal and chemical product prices began to rebound after prolonged declines during the second half of 2008, Ma said.
Tags: coal, manufacturing, steelRelated Posts:
