Climate shift means end of the road for cars and more investment in public transport – Yorkshire Post letters

DAN Jarvis’s comments on Northern transport (The Yorkshire Post, March 12) are good ones. There does need to be more investment and it should be aimed at creating a sustainable transport network for a more inclusive society – especially by an emphasis on local transport, such as the bus service, and active travel.

Dan Jarvis: Investment in transport is key to North’s future

Yet he seems to miss one of the most radical changes we need. That is a shift in investment to rail and other public transport and away from roads. Very little expansion in the road network can any longer be justified. All the evidence shows that any significant increase in road miles will be incompatible with our commitments on climate change.

Shortly before finalising its Strategic Transport Plan, Transport for the North (TfN) finally accepted calls from campaigners to ensure the total extent of its projects will be in line with climate policy.

We will continue to press this body to honour this. New roads will only lead to more traffic and congestion. If TfN wants greater connectivity, it must ensure proper investment in the railways again.

From: Ian Richardson, Railway Street, Beverley.

PERHAPS nothing should surprise us any more concerning the political farce of the Brexit process. Chief amongst the clowns must indisputably be Chris Grayling. Not content with having to compensate Eurotunnel with over £30m, his hapless department now runs the risk of losing another £56m to refund ferry operators.

Just think what this money could have done to boost the woeful state of transport across Yorkshire. A personal wish-list would include a tram network for Leeds, reopening the York to Beverley railway line and making bus travel free for all children and students. Without Mr Grayling’s propensity to waste money, we could have all these things and more.

Why has faith divided us?

From: Arthur Quarmby, Mill Moor Road, Meltham

RELIGION is the source of so much death, destruction and misery in the world, and especially the rivalry between the three main western religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It would be funny if it were not so tragic.

Because each religion is clearly worshipping exactly the same concept of a creator spirit. However each has its own prophet, who has differing ideas about how the creator spirit should be worshipped.

Now one would have thought that the mode of worship itself was no big deal – but it has somehow become of over-riding importance; so important indeed as certainly to justify killing supporters of either of the other prophets.

Does anyone ever wonder what the creator spirit thinks about all this? Is the spirit delighted that supporters of any prophet justify themselves in killing supporters of the others?

Isn’t this situation too ridiculous to be tolerated in a supposedly civilised society? Why don’t we stop it?

Accent on clarity

From: Brian H Sheridan, Lodge Moor, Sheffield.

I FEEL sorry for Christopher Dunn if he is irritated by the grammatical solecisms of our regional speech (The Yorkshire Post, March 18). He must inhabit a somewhat sanitised linguistic world.

The whimsical Aldi advertisement he dislikes, showing a Yorkshire farmer vaulting a gate and being told “that were amazing” (it is actually “amazin’”) could not plausibly be delivered in anything but the vernacular.

I don’t know where your correspondent hails from but why does he pick on Yorkshire folk? He should listen to ebullient Sky Sports pundits Londoner Paul Merson and Glaswegian Charlie Nicholas.

Which brings me to my main point: you don’t need to know syntax from tin tacks to be a good communicator.

I enjoy listening to Paul and Charlie because they are eloquent in their own way. And I can always tell what they say: which is more than I can say for Fiona Bruce.

Marmalade on the move

From: Janet Carby-Hall, Pannal, Harrogate.

ON a recent holiday in Scotland I bought two jars of marmalade. One was made in Hull, the other was made in Harrogate where I live.

After finishing the contents at home my husband bought two more jars at the local supermaket (Morrisons) and guess where their contents were made – Dundee, Scotland. Seems we have been eating a lot of marmalade recently.

Do we need all those lorries on the road carrying marmalade backwards and forwards? Isn’t it a silly world?

United we stand

From: Hilary Andrews, Leeds.

WHILE it is disgusting that the Government won’t disclose why they have rejected a One Yorkshire deal (The Yorkshire Post, March 16), I don’t think it matters as we know it is because they realise we would be a powerful force to stand against London and the rich south.

Futile ads

From: Peter Hyde, Driffield.

I HAVE to agree with what Betty Bell says (The Yorkshire Post, March 18) – I find many TV adverts rather futile and, at times, find them incomprehensible. The expression ‘Know what I mean?’ makes me want to answer ‘No I don’t know what you mean’. Such comments tend to show the ignorance of the speaker.