Closed loop recycling

According to The Week (14 June) Britain's first 'closed loop' plant dealing with plastic bottle recycling opens at Dagenham on 26 June.

Under 'closed loop' recycling, different types of plastic are kept separate so they can be used again at the same quality as the virgin plastic, rather than getting mixed up with other plastics and becoming "low grade" and therefore unusable for high-end packaging such as for food.

Bygone Barking By Bike Photos

http://picasaweb.google.com/cardinal1962/BBBB_08

9 photos of the ride here. Weather wasn't very good: Though it didn't rain, the light was poor for photos. I've done what I can to enhance them in software.

Recycling beverage cartons

http://stibasa.blogspot.com/2008/06/recycling.html

Further to my post on 7 June, I can confirm that there is a bin for these in Axe Street opposite the Abbey Sports Centre.

The road to nowhere

http://stibasa.blogspot.com/2008/05/road-to-nowhere.html

The road between Jenkins Lane and Highbridge Road that has been waiting for its last section for years must be on the brink of opening. The surface is on the roadway and theirs some pedestrian railing, but the pre-existing gate was closed when I visited there today.

I went back north and crossed over the A406 at the footbridge then down the (overgrown) path on the East Ham side, where a big site has been levelled. From Jenkins Lane one can go up the new road to the other side of the gates. There are no signs upon this side but I'm guessing single alternate line working might be necessary.

The site containing the stupidly named Newham Showcase Cinema has lost its bowling alley and Burger King has closed. No that I'm that bothered about Burger King but the whole site is looking a bit sorry for itself. This development is extremely cycle unfriendly; Newham Council and the developers have done absolutely NOTHING to encourage or even accommodate them.

Recycling

A shoes and clothes bank is now in situ in Salisbury Avenue - j/w Greenslade Rd (by the footbridge to Essex and Suffolk Roads).

I'm told that fruit juice cartons and the like can be binned for recycling in Axe Street. I had a quick look at the council website to try to confirm this, without any success.

Councillors' Bike Ride

This idea was suggested to me by Eastbury Ward Councillor Evelyn Carpenter at today's Big Green Borough Day. I suppose it could be B and D's equivalent of the MPs' annual bike ride. The Mayor could ride in full regalia.

Appropriate dates for it could be:

The Barking Festival (Saturday before the last Monday in May) - though it doesn't really seem to exist except for the classical concert., I think it should.

Big Green Borough Day - first Friday (schools) and Saturday (public) in June. Dates tbc.

Bike Week - 9 days starting on second Saturday in June.

Vote no to one-ways for cyclists

There is an Evening Standard poll today on whether cyclists should 'be able to travel in either direction on London's one-way streets'. http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/
Currently at 61% no, 39% yes.

It would certainly save a lot of campaigning to undo 1-ways or to stop them being introduced. The powers that be would want a way of having exceptions, of course, but it's just an opinion poll.