Just a quick note to say that yesterday I emailed all DTC and DDC councillors. Despite being a Saturday, two have already replied in support and signed the petition. It is NOT too late to convince Mr Baker to change his mind. He did so with the Herne Bay scheme (reversing large parts of it after it was completed = huge waste of money). And here are some more reasons to scrap the Pencester plan:
• If Maison Dieu Road is ever congested (which it can be at busy ferry port/Jubilee Way closure times), then if the fast track bus is routed down Ladywell, it could go straight down Park Street and across Maison Dieu at the traffic lights. Continue up Park Avenue and join Connaught Hill there, continuing up to Guston on its regular route.
• The bus stop on Ladywell is right opposite the soon to be reopened Maison Dieu. So if anyone was wanting to visit there, they could do so more easily than if they were dropped off at Pencester.
• An additional point to note while the proposed work would be taking place: Dover Technical College has many students who travel from Deal and other places by bus (many neurodiverse). They get off at Pencester, which is right opposite the gate that takes you into the college. Any work on Pencester is going to really disrupt their routine and could potentially harm attandance rates. (I used to work there in their learning support dept and still have friends who do - we all find this a worrying prospect.)