Rave Up with Arielle Free

[E*F*4L]

right i'm gonna have a bit of a rant here

why is it that every year in the winter the UK comes to a standstill when there is one inch of snow, or one hard frost (ice) the roads get blocked, airports close, trains don't run, ports shutdown, schools closed.

panic :woo: chaos :woo:

we get told that we are not used to these sorts of conditions in the UK, well i'm 32 & i can remember going to primary school when there was a foot or more of snow outside, so for 30 odd years we have had exactly the same conditions in the winter months (December, January, February) so how long does it take for the UK to get used to it, i'm sure this sort weather has been going on longer than i can remember, so i would think that the councils, train company's, airports etc would also have got used to it by now & put in place things to stop the country shutting down because of one millimeter of snow !

take them poor people stuck on the Euro-Star train, oh the poor train it's to cold for it to work properly & there is nothing in place to help people who are trapped in the train when it breaks down, well i'm sorry but the year is 2009.

i'm pretty sure that the rest of the world that seems to cope with a bit of snow all huddles around the TV to watch us in the UK make a right fool of ourselves, we must be a laughing stock :giggle:

i don't buy this " Ooooo it doesn't happen often enough, to do anything about it or get stuff prepared" well fuck off it been 2000 years to sort something out.

another thing is "don't travel if it's not essential" what exactly is "essential travel" ?

there was some woman trying to get to work in her car in tears because she couldn't make it in to work, she said "if i don't get to work i won't get paid" therefore she works in the private sector & the people who say "don't travel if it's not essential" are people who work in the public sector who will get paid if they don't turn up for work if it's a bit cold, like last year in Birmingham who let all the council workers leave after half a day because of the traffic problems some snow had caused.

is work essential travel ?

have you had enough of the way the UK grinds to a halt when it snows, what could be done about it ?

[Sarah_]

Well it's not just habit it's also machines and security... Schools do close down over here too and we have 5 winter months each year.

It's not a question of "it's bad the economy" and bla bla bla, it's also a question of security. You don't have many heavy machines to take care of the roads, airports and trains in england, people do not have snow tires, electricity is alway in high demand in winter so sometimes there are blackouts.

We need 136 M$ in Montreal ALONE to take care of the snow...

Just relax a bit and enjoy the little snow that you have in england...

By the way I'm not saying that it's not annoying. Last year I took a train from Montreal to Toronto during a heavy snow storm and sometimes we had to stop with no lights on. It's suposed to take 5-6 hours it took us 9... We are really lucky for the airport tho.

EDIT: I forgot to add: People love a bit of drama don't they? So they panic

[DC]

we haven't got any snow. i really hate the midlands.

[Desktop Henry]

Unfair to say that the whole of the UK can't handle an inch of snow and a cold snap. Most of the time it's the south who ends up in a gridlock.

[Hammer]

It's because it snows properly in the UK only about once every few years. No one bothers having any provisions for when it occasionally happens.

[krazy_chloe]

Also, it only usually lasts for a day or two, so there's not much point sorting it out.

[Viv]

I just LOVE your rant, EF4L. I took umpteen people off of my twitter for daring to comment on snow. It's f****** Winter, what do you want 80 degrees of sunshine when you step outside. Get over it. Live with it.

Put some extra layers on, the way sensible people do abroad, and get outside.

I remember being in Iceland years ago on holiday, the snow fall was pretty deep, but they just use suitable vehicles to get rid of it, and get on with their lives.

This country is an all-round laughing stock in so many ways.

[Desktop Henry]

I just LOVE your rant, EF4L. I took umpteen people off of my twitter for daring to comment on snow. It's f****** Winter, what do you want 80 degrees of sunshine when you step outside. Get over it. Live with it.

LOL

[Viv]

:hahaha:

I was reading yesterday in the Scottish Daily Record that shop owners leave their pavements icy outside because of health & safety reasons!! I mean, h&s for their own staff.... where did common sense go?

[DarkAngelMJH]

Because if they clear the steps to the shop and someone still slips, then they are liable for not clearing it properly. If they don't bother clearing it they don't get done for it.

Stupid but ah well that's what todays society is like.

[augusta92]

I like the snow, but live in east anglia I am really fed up that no-one has been able to clear roads and pavements properly after almost a week. My elderly neighbours who are wobbly on their feet in any case cant get out at all.

There are plenty of ways the situation could be better! Countries and areas used to snow surely wouldnt have this chaos for so long. Why not have a few more contingency solutions and snow ploughs as well as just gritters! It might save some of the cost of accidents dealt with at hospitals from people who have fallen over on the ice and broken bones!

[Desktop Henry]

Snowed a few hours ago where I live. Before the roads were gritted and clear, within 1hr of snowing the roads were blanketed. Because it's so cold, the snow quickly settles and turns into ice, therefore gritters are fighting a losing battle.

[krazy_chloe]

My dad's car slid down the driveway into the wall!

[KingTutsWWH]

I agree with you Alan. I have lots of friends and family in Scandinavia. Their roads don't grind to a standstill when it snows, they couldn't afford for this to happen.

It's been snowing all night here, we have several inches of the stuff, but the boyf made it in to work this morning. Took him a while, due to an accident in front of him on the motorway. I'm really not looking forward to the drive over to his mum's in the countryside tomorrow morning though.

I love snow, but Britain really needs to be more prepared and responsible when it comes to clearing the roads. The British public could also try to be more sensible when driving in these conditions. There are some real idiots in possession of a driving license.

[cxx666]

:hahaha:

I was reading yesterday in the Scottish Daily Record that shop owners leave their pavements icy outside because of health & safety reasons!! I mean, h&s for their own staff.... where did common sense go?

At my work, we're not allowed to touch the car park when it becomes icy or snowy. A couple years ago a few days before christmas, someone fell in the car park after it had been gritted that morning. Because it had been gritted that day he then tried to sue the company.

I was involved in giving statements etc because it was me who gritted the car park. I have no idea if he had any success or was just told to go away and stop being a little girl because I've not heard anything about it since the solicitor came to speak to me.