Kennet centre car park Options

[tom1]

Reading about the incident with the car at the car park yesterday I may well be getting confused in my old age but I thought the entrance was in Bartholomew st and the exit in Market st or has Newbury changed that much since I was a boy.

[Simon Kirby]

Yes, I thought the exits were in Market Street, though it's many years since I parked there. (helpful linky thing)

I read this:

Thames Valley Police spokeswoman, Lucy Billen, said police were called at 2.35pm to the Bartholomew Street exit of the shopping centre, after a new, white Toyota Aygo, driven by a woman, with no passengers, collided with an exit barrier and wall at the West Berkshire Council owned car park.

Is it significant that the car was driven by a woman? Shouldn't we also know if she was old, fat, foreign, bespectacled, or wearing a hat?

Can anyone tell me also why the police were involved at all? Rescue tender and ambulance I can understand if the accident was serious (and it sounded rather serious) but police? Was she (the woman that we're told about) suspected of fleeing without paying her parking ticket?

[JeffG]

Is it significant that the car was driven by a woman?

You forgot to highlight the phrase after that "with no passengers" as well. How else would you describe the occupant(s) of the vehicle to avoid hurting your sensibilities? Driven by a human?

[Claude]

For those interested, the link to the story can be found HERE

The bit that confuses me is:

"UPDATE 9.30am

There is currently no exit from the ground floor, with diversions in place."

Where does the diversion take you? To the top level where you have to use a temporary ramp to perform a Duke of Hazzard-style manoeuvre to exit the car park, or is there another secret exit I'm not aware of?

[Simon Kirby]

You forgot to highlight the phrase after that "with no passengers" as well. How else would you describe the occupant(s) of the vehicle to avoid hurting your sensibilities? Driven by a human?

Unless you tell me otherwise I'm going to assume it was being driven by someone, so you really don't need to say anything at all about the driver, because I'm going to assume that anything you do tell me about the driver is going to be relevant and to have contributed to the accident. This was a TVP press statement remember, I don't actually see why they would be commenting on the incident at all other than maybe to say that they were called to attend an accident at the carpark in which no one was injured, and I certainly don't see how it serves the public interest to profile the driver. Had the driver been male would TVP have described the driver as "a man"?

[DJE]

Had the driver been male would TVP have described the driver as "a man"?

Probably, yes.

[Simon Kirby]

Probably, yes.

Actually yes, I expect they would. All the same, it seems arbitrary and unnecessary.

[GhostMemory]

Where does the diversion take you? To the top level where you have to use a temporary ramp to perform a Duke of Hazzard-style manoeuvre to exit the car park, or is there another secret exit I'm not aware of?

Just up one level, from which you can then go through the (working) barrier on the ramp downwards.

[spartacus]

Is it significant that the car was driven by a woman?

Yes. If a man had been driving it wouldn't have happened.

Can anyone tell me also why the police were involved at all?

A driver has an accident which could have resulted in serious injury if there were pedestrians in the area. Perhaps a sensible move is to call the police in case there's an issue regarding drunk driving? (a few G&Ts in the afternoon for the old dear) Also there's an insurance issue for both the driver and the owners of the damaged building. The driver is elderly. The police need to check that they are safe to continue driving or consider booking them in for medical checks. That's the sort of thing that only the police can do at these incidents.

There is currently no exit from the ground floor, with diversions in place."

Where does the diversion take you? To the top level where you have to use a temporary ramp to perform a Duke of Hazzard-style manoeuvre to exit the car park, or is there another secret exit I'm not aware of?

If you park in the ground floor you exit via the ground floor. Park on any other level and you leave via the exit ramp on the first floor.

Had the driver been male would TVP have described the driver as "a man"?

Only if he was black....

[DJE]

Actually yes, I expect they would. All the same, it seems arbitrary and unnecessary.

Perhaps you should object to the "collided with an exit barrier and wall at the West Berkshire Council owned car park." bit too.

Quite unnecessary to point out that the car park is Council owned.

Is there anything else in the article we can get indignant about? I'm really getting into indignation now.

[Andy Capp]

If only they'd say whether she's on benefits and lives in a council house, then we could all really boo-hiss.

[Simon Kirby]

If only they'd say whether she's on benefits and lives in a council house, then we could all really boo-hiss.

Quite.

[Simon Kirby]

A driver has an accident which could have resulted in serious injury if there were pedestrians in the area. Perhaps a sensible move is to call the police in case there's an issue regarding drunk driving? (a few G&Ts in the afternoon for the old dear)

Yes, I hadn't thought of that, good point.

I think I'm indignant because I read the report as "stupid woman driver", which to be fair is my interpretation, but for reasons that I can't quite put my finger on I'm not altogether happy with the police acting as some kind of news agency, and I don't see that gender should be an issue any longer.

[user23]

Yes, I hadn't thought of that, good point.

I think I'm indignant because I read the report as "stupid woman driver", which to be fair is my interpretation, but for reasons that I can't quite put my finger on I'm not altogether happy with the police acting as some kind of news agency, and I don't see that gender should be an issue any longer.

Most local papers would struggle to fill their pages if the police didn't release statements about their activities.

[On the edge]

Was the driver ginger haired? No mention was made of any fluid loss from the vehicle, a very serious issue - we wouldn't want to put Thames Water to any more expense stopping it entering the ground water.

[spartacus]

The car was written off in this senseless act and more of the Earth's valuable resources have again been wasted, leaving a terrible legacy for mankind...


On a positive note however, there's now one car's worth less of CO2 emissions being pumped into the atmosphere to worry ourselves about.

[desres123]

Reading about the incident with the car at the car park yesterday I may well be getting confused in my old age but I thought the entrance was in Bartholomew st and the exit in Market st or has Newbury changed that much since I was a boy.

Obviously the journalists nwn employ are not local

[motormad]

Yes. If a man had been driving it wouldn't have happened.
........

Only if he was black....

If only they'd say whether she's on benefits and lives in a council house, then we could all really boo-hiss.

[On the edge]

Well, this is really a minor news item, but the length of the thread shows we must have enjoyed it. Who says NWN ain't great value!!!

[dannyboy]

Yes, I hadn't thought of that, good point.

I think I'm indignant because I read the report as "stupid woman driver", which to be fair is my interpretation, but for reasons that I can't quite put my finger on I'm not altogether happy with the police acting as some kind of news agency, and I don't see that gender should be an issue any longer.

the NWN will fall back on the GMR defence - that thery just reported the 'facts' & you read into them your own preconcieved ideas. Be they positive or negative....