Pidgin Posting

Weekly standardised mortality rates in England & Wales; based on the week the death was registered.

The CMI have released their first mortality monitor of 2026.

Based on death registrations, death rates in each of the first 5 weeks of 2026 were lower than last year.

Mortality year to date in 2026 is equal to the best years on record.

www.actuaries.org.uk/learn-and-de...

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Ace thread by Ranty. Free parking is like homeopathy for ailing town centres. Despite all the evidence many think it will work.

I raced through this - absolutely superb.

I’m going mad: councillor rages re ‘danger’ floating bus stops after car almost kills woman @ bus stop. RNIB denounce them, in bed with Waymo ‘autonomous’ cars despite huge safety issues. Whyte & RNIB ignore eg lorry pavement parking or driver using car to threaten. The world of motornormativity

He’s always been clueless about this sort of stuff, even though he sits on the transport committee.

Or these ones on Meadowplace Road.

And yet for the >50yrs this has been the default design in many places in Europe it is somehow safe there as there are no pedestrians/disabled people. Clowns. Still struck how no one references those decades of evidence in discussions. I've personally ridden on some that extend beyond living memory

Not to downplay anyone's feelings or concerns, but surely HGVs mounting the pavement are an order of magnitude more dangerous than a cycle track at a bus stop. Odd how groups claiming to represent pedestrians and those with disabilities don't seem to be vocally exercised by this kind of thing eh?

Leith Walk cycle lane blocked by two separate articulated lorries with all four wheels on the pavement.

Yay! Cycle lanes.

A "floating bus stop" with cycle lanes infront and behind. Behind the bus stop is pavement which is covered in parked cars, which also block the painted crossing point

An exhibit for the floating bus stop discourse 🧐

Bears?

Also, why no quotation marks around “life threatening”?

Council needs to see the danger of floating bus stops - Iain Whyte I’m sure most Evening News readers believe it’s the council’s job to act if parts of our road and pavement network are “life threatening and dangerous”, even if that job isn’t always done as well or a...

“Life threatening” is the new “trapped in our homes” www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/opinion...

I recall Miles Briggs launching a campaign against it alongside multi-millionaire care-home owner and Tory donor Robert Kilgour. Kilgour was concerned about the impact it would have on the minimum-wage staff he employed at his care homes.

A map of central Edinburgh, showing locations of modal filters as red, grey or purple dots

There are more modal-filters* in Edinburgh than you might think!

It’s almost like they’re not controversial!

*strategic closure to motor traffic

Fun map to explore:
www.lowtrafficneighbourhoods.org/map/modalfil...

A screen grab of a petition to "oppose the new bus gate proposals on Turnhouse Road." It's signed by 435 people.

" The Issue Turnhouse Road in Edinburgh is a vital artery for residents and commuters alike. The recent proposal to implement new bus gates along this road is a cause for deep concern. This plan, while ostensibly designed to enhance public transport efficiency, could inadvertently create more problems than it solves. Firstly, the introduction of bus gates is likely to significantly increase congestion in the area. Bus gates limit access for cars, funneling large volumes of traffic into smaller, already busy roads. This can lead to longer commute times, increased pollution from idling vehicles, and heightened frustration for road users. For those residing near Turnhouse Road, daily life could become a nightmare with a constant traffic surge, reducing quality of life and potentially impacting local businesses dependent on smooth traffic flow. Moreover, the current infrastructure does not adequately support an abrupt change of this nature. Emergency services, which rely on quick road access, may face delays due to increased congestion. School runs and grocery shopping, simple daily tasks for families, could transform into burdensome errands. These factors combine to create a significant risk of diminishing the attractiveness of the area for potential residents and investors. There is also a lack of transparent consultation with the community. Residents deserve to have their voices heard, especially when changes of this magnitude are proposed. A thorough impact assessment is necessary, along with open dialogues where concerns can be raised and addressed collaboratively. We are calling on the Edinburgh City Council to reconsider this proposal. Explore alternative solutions that enhance public transport without debilitating side effects. Furthermore, to even consider this proposal when sufficient and proper access to the tram and train station is quite frankly, absurd. Please sign this petition to urge the city council to halt the current plans"

Here we go again...

Ulez bomber: the retired electrician who turned bomb-making extremist Shy 63-year-old’s decision to blow up London traffic camera linked to online conspiracy theories and Islamophobia

If you’ve not seen it, v good piece by top colleague @matthewweaver.bsky.social on the suburban Ulez camera bomber, the online radicalisation of older people and the sheer toxicity of “war on the motorist” and anti-Sadiq Khan discourse.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

"Fun" fact: a few years ago i wrote an article explaining the 15 minute city concept (a fairly benign Urban design method that has been around in other forms for donkeys).

Someone writing to my Dean imploring them to sack me, and we got offered campus security for a week.

And who are the nutters?

Group of cyclists using a floating bus stop with a clear glazed shelter & a Brighton & Hove bus on the road in a bus lane being overtaken by a queue of cars

Children cutting a ribbon on a cycle track with bicycles either side & politicians behind (L-R Ian Davey, Cabinet Member for Transport BHCC; Norman Baker MP, Minister for Roads; Jason Kitcat, Leader of BHCC - also Ben Sherrat of Sustrans in Green tshirt), while a 25 bus pulls into the stop

We've had them for real in Brighton since *May* 2013 when 14 floating bus stops were installed along Lewes Rd. Opened by then Roads Minister Norman Baker without much fuss (also @iandaveysussex.bsky.social)... Been working fine for over a decade & AFAIK no reported conflicts with bus passengers

When’s he jumping ship to Reform?

Unleading the petrol really was one of the best interventions ever

Recently in Edinburgh some residents of a school street (which they had asked for!) objected to further road safety measures around the school on the basis it would inconvenience them driving.

Those damn cycle lanes! *shakes fist at sky*

Extra lane proposed as 'interim solution' at Sheriffhall roundabout Transport bosses are being urged to create an extra lane on the approach to Edinburgh's Sheriffhall roundabout in a bid to ease congestion while the wait goes on for a full upgrade.

This falls very much in the “how hard can it be?” school of thought. If enough people drive off the road then MSPs will suggest making it permanent. Why stop at the roundabout? If they go across the fields we’ll have a new road network in no time. www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/edinbur...

www.scotsman.com/regions/aber...

Aberdeen’s free parking trial similarly had no impact (and cost around £80k)

Yeah, mostly. Still keep an eye on the other place.

How are you doing?

For Leith walk it is important to note that a vocal charity claiming to represent pedestrians demanded that there was no grade separation for the pre-tram sections. Napier study highlights grade separation as a step to aiding recognition of cycle track.

Excellent piece of empirical evidence, combined with the napier study of Leith walk bsbs prior to trams shows that there is no safety issue and perception issues can be designed out.