Anyone else tried the top deck yet? Felt a bit portakabin-ish there but really liked the escalator and the way trolleys are magnetically locked to them. Whatever next - except that the ramp is, so they tell me, electrically heated.

Enter the whingers.....

Hi tech stuff, here GMR - thanks. Did you go aloft yourself?

Hi,

No... but maybe next time I'll take my bike up there.

I did notice the new escalators inside Sainsbury's. It seems it will be a very good store.

The contractors have been excellent there.

If only all this kind of work could be done as intelligently as this.

I agree; Sainsbury's pay the best and expect good service. WBC pay the minimum and also expect top service. You get what you pay for at the end of the day.

Yes, it's as if the work has been going on without anyone really noticing and then, suddenly, most of the top deck of a new car park is ready for use only a few months after it all started. Fair play to them and fair play to JS for giving free parking - have occasionally had to convince visitors to Newbury that this is the case, they tend to assume there must be a charge.

after walking to Sainsburys today it seems that drivers have now forgotten what a zebra crossing is, I got several filthy looks and even one driver honked his horn in anger while I was trying to cross the road

Did you know that the zebra crossing on Sainsbury's car park is private property, therefore is no legal standing.

Having tried it once, I don't think I'll be using the upper deck very often. I found it very frustrating having to stand still on the travelator with my trolley's wheels firmly locked. (I also get a bit annoyed with people whose legs stop working once they get on the escalator in M&S - but I guess that's classed as a "rant" )

And at the risk of seeming to moan (would I ever??) I can't understand why some people here suggest the changes to the car park have gone on largely unnoticed - it's been a nightmare negotiating it for the past several weeks. Though it's going to be great when it's finished, and I agree the upper deck seems to be appearing as if by magic.

Honestly never found a problem, must say Jeff, so perhaps it's just the times of the day and the two or so days of the week I go shopping. At least there are no bollards there, only pillars to hit. The top deck will be a bit chilly in wintertime, mind.

I'm not sure that is strictly true. I remember once reading how under certain circumstances people can be prosecuted (sued?) for speeding on private land if it is a highway that is used by the public. Perhaps there might be some mechanism similar to this for the crossing points in a car park.

Yeah, and I'm going back 30 odd years here - I remember a barrister telling us then that the acts and omissions of motorists on a private road to which the public had access could be construed in the same way as if it was a public highway when it came to claims. I assume public car parks would come into this category. Any shyster lawyer care to put us right?

Nicely put! (sorry for the spam, but I just had to put that in).

I was told this by a police officer - a highway patrol officer a few years ago.

I don't think WBC should be spending our Council Tax on more expensive contractors.

Then you must accept what you get.

An area where a policeman has no jurisdiction is not the same thing as "no standing in law". I would accept that ignoring apparent highway road signs and markings on private land is not endorsable.

Sorry everyone, but I have just realise this has gone way off topic!

I can only repeat what I was told. Of course if somebody hit somebody whether they are on a zebra crossing or not then that is a different matter, however, they can't take it into consideration because the victim was on a zebra crossing on private land.

Grumpy old man rant coming! I am right with you on those travelators Jeff. There is one at Ikea down in Southampton and I recently got stuck behind a whole family blocking the way and the travelators there go up/down about 4 floors, I think it took about 10 mins to get in. And it is worse at airports where you have those travelators but if you get stuck behind people who don't want to walk you find people who are not on it walking past!!! People are so lazy and it is no wonder there are a lot of porkers out there.

err, if you believe this, what are you doing on the travelator in the first place????

Trying to move faster than normal, time is money

It'll only lead to you joining annoying queues at the understaffed tills quicker

TBH I don't care if people don't want to use their legs on the travelators BUT to block them so other people don't have that option is just rude IMO.

I think the reason they stop trolleys moving on them (the ones on inclines not the airport ones) are for good old health and safety reasons.

See what happens to 'slack jawed yokels' who stand on the wrong side of the escalators during the peak hours at any Underground station in London

Precisely. Obviously these people have not been on the LU training course like the rest of us.

I only found this out last week. I got an e-mail back from the Council after I had asked them to get the land owner at Newbury Retail Park to re-do the markings on the zebra at the entrance.

I was told the same, that as the zebra is on private property it has no legal standing and also does not require belisha beacons......They had however referred my comment and other areas of faded road markings for the owner to look at.

My concern is that this 'point of law' is not well known at all, I cannot recall it being in the Highway code -correct me if I am wrong.

I did think that this was a bit mad though as retailers are required to eliminate trip hazards, provide disabled access etc etc, yet the retail parks/ supermarkets are not required to establish robust safe pedestrian routes through traffic infested car parks.
In fairness the major supermarkets do put a lot of effort on safe pedestrian routes including signs and belisha beacons (I know as the company I work for has installed many for different Tesco's and other chains).

I suppose its the same old thing, when someone dies on a faded, un-signed, un-lit crossing on private land the powers that be will react to it.

This is it, the land owner, if they permit access by the general public, have a duty of care. It seems the various signs and road markings are effectively advisory.

You can bet their next of kin will, with suitable legal representation.....

The top deck of the car park is closed off today and the travelators are not working. Ah well, it was good while it lasted!

I bet that will make the rest of the car park 'interesting'.

I don't know if it is still like that but they had a few problems and were working to fix them. Hopefully it will be back in use soon.

It was all working again when I was there just before midday. The 'up' was already working and they got the down travelator working again just as I arrived.

I just cycled pass it and they've got cars on the top rack. Obviously they've worked fast to get it going, all credit to them.

They did last weekend.

I see that Sainsbury’s has built even more on to their car park extension. There is even more car parking space than there originally was.

I guess that was the idea - make the store 50% bigger and increase the car parking to cope with the extra customers. There will be 150-200 more spaces than before.

I was talking to somebody in Sainsbury's and they told me that eventually it will be bigger than Tesco's at Pinchington lane.

263 I believe.

Trouble is no petrol station at present and there aren't many alternatives these days.

Cue massive queues at Tescos etc.

No queues at 4AM

I've gone off Tesco petrol recently. Filled up there a few weeks ago and within a few miles, hesitating, poor acceleration and very lumpy. Filled up at Sainsbury's and again, within a few miles, all was back to normal. Luckily I go past Calcot regularly.

Going slightly off topic here but a friend of mine trained as an industrial chemist before opening a garage in North Wales some years ago. He advises to always steer clear of supermarket petrol as it is basic at best and doesn't compare with quality stuff like Shell or BP hence I try not to use Tesco or Sainsbury's petrol. Is there anything in what he says, I wonder?

We used the station opposite Park House today, queued about 5 minutes only a few p per litre more than supermarkets.

I have known them to be the same price as Tesco.

Was surprised that air cost 20p for 2 minutes though!

A near incident at Sainsbury's car tower/ park today; one car speeding up the ramp almost hit another car. They should be going up those ramps at a slow speed.

I thought there were massive bright yellow kerbs separating the up and down lanes?

There is; but it doesn't stop some drivers behaving badly.

Were they both going in the same direction?

Well?

I'm genuinely interested, especially after my Zebra Crossing thread.