Heavy snow expected
Tuesday 5th January 2010, 3:00PM GMT.
There was a little snow this morning – but the worst is expected from tomorrow afternoon
HEAVY snow and freezing temperatures are expected to bring chaos to Jersey’s roads and could stop thousands of children returning to school over the next few days.
While the rest of Britain is on course for its coldest winter in 30 years, forecasters in Jersey have predicted that two inches of snow will fall tomorrow afternoon and evening, causing possible problems for workers on their way home.
Temperatures over the last few days have plunged to well below average and wintry showers are expected over the course of the week, including this evening.
And with children due to return to school tomorrow, both Education, Sport and Culture and Connex, who run the school bus service, are poised to respond if the bad weather hits.
Read the full story in the Jersey Evening Post. Click here for subscription details. Individual editions are also available online.
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Ahhhh!the usual island chaos is on us once more with the threat of a dozen snowflakes.
Just remember folks a more important fact,to keep your white cats indoors,as the old saying goes
“a white cat” is most easily lost in a snowstorm!
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Please please please please pleeaassseee sno!!!
Preferably before school rather than during school so we are nto snowed in!! (though school sleepover… sounds a laugh!!!)
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Hmmm! Going by the number of large 4×4′s that take the kids to school on a perfect sunny day in the middle of June, there shouldn’t a problem getting to school, bearing in mind these may be just the conditions for which these vehicles were designed.
Unless, of course, driving a 1 – 1.5 tonne solid piece of steel is beyond the capability of those drivers who don’t appreciate or understand their vehicles ability.
Jus’ a-wonderin’….
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Cancel busses and close schools !!
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Why does this have to bring chaos? With such a weather warning, gritters should be out all over the island now, and guess what? Life can carry on as normal tomorrow.
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2 INCHES! 2 WHOLE INCHES! Those poor thousands of children will be snowed in…!!!
Britain is set to have the coldest winter in 100 years, not 30 and are having to cope with around 7 inches of snow with no grit…and Jersey grinds to a halt (excuse the pun) with 2 inches of snow. It’s ridiculous.
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Panic ye not, the 5 day forecast on this very website indicates a daytime temperature of plus 3 degrees. Any snow should melt meaning kids can attend school, people can get to work and the shiny new 4X4′s owned by the mum’s will not have to be used once in their lives for their intended purpose – phew.
Not that mummy would take it out in the snow you understand.
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Yer gorra larf ain’t yer!!!
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I dare say this thread will soon be inundated with lots of comments along the lines of, “back home we get 8 inches of snow and still drive at 70 on the motorways” etc etc
Apparently, everything is so much better ‘on the mainland’ – it makes one wonder why they came here at all…
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What happened to the global warming then?
In October we were told it would be a mild winter.
Same with the hottest summer ever.
No doubt the “experts” will come out with some excuse or other.
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how about spending some of the tax payers money for a change on something useful like properly gritting the roads instead of a half job….and waisting money on parking cones or railings that arnt needed…just look at the airport….what a load of bollards ….
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Jersey you are not alone when it comes to a few
centimetres of snow,here
in Guernsey its the same old thing,where panic sets in and everything goes to pot,for heavens sake why ? Part of my family is from Norway,we
frequently find ourselves up there in winter time visits,
I mean real winter,real freeze,real snow!We’ve
just returned from Scandinavia,where it was up to a meter depth of snow,average temps down to minus
13dgrC,where it would be a joke to close schools,with parents not thinking twice about their children some as young as six walking or
to ski to school,without worring about their little darlings if they fall over,why? because
like most sensible countries Norway is not caught up with the Exagerated madness which
ravages Britain called “Health and Safety”!Up
there busses,trains and airports run as normal,people go to work by car as normal,as
winter tyres are law,from Nov to March whether
it snows or not.My 7 hour “jaw dropping” Dvd film taken in winter from the engine cab of a passenger train between Bergen and Oslo,puts Eurostar to shame.The effect on British economy through a few flurries is madness.Before anyone says it,I can assure you Scandinavia hates winter,but they just get on with it,without any
winjing,and all that real winter hardly gets a mention in the media,don’t believe it,then visit it,its stunning and an education that other countries could learn from.
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Oh for heavans sake! get a life! Get a grip and just accept it. Talk about bubbles? ooh!! 2 inches yeah! oooh! and did you know it was at leat 3 inches in St Ouens. If half the island fails to turn up for work I’m a politician!!!!
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I no longer live in Jersey but It is in my heart more than ever. I went through several of those snow warnings and it puts a smile on me face each time I hear about it. I now live in the French Alps and we have to deal with 9 to 10 inches of snow here in the valley not to mention the 30+ inches at the ski resorts. Of course we are well equiped but it doesnt always make the drive to work and back that easy. And believe me the 4×4 vehicles, as tough they can be are the most dangerous ones on snow and are not more secure that a standard car if they are not equiped with snow tyres. However with a minimun of precaution and bearing in mind the less braking the better, Jersey residents should go through this winter offensive without a scratch…
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So what if schools close? I am sure the children will appreciate the extra day at home, especially if it snows quite a bit and they can go outside to play. Some of the people who post on this site are always moaning, must be hard going through life doing nothing but moan moan moan moan.
ENJOY THE SNOW CHILDREN!
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Charlie, post number 12.
Are you serious? All that because schools will be closed? Yeah other countries know how to deal with the snow, but then they get it every single year so everyone is prepared for it. It is only schools that will be closed, it’s hardly CHAOS! I don’t understand some of the hysterical posts on here. Anyway, off to enjoy any snow we get, hopefully it will be enough to build a snowman or 2.
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I don’t understand how a little bit of snow can cause so much chaos on an Island that is just 45 square miles. The States Department that has responsiblity for clearing the snow should be ashamed of themselves if they can’t cope with the problem and their bosses should have a kick up the backside.
Clearly priority should be given to all the main roads, the ‘A’ roads, then the ‘B’ roads, the ‘C’ roads and then any unclassified roads maintained at the expense of the States or Parish.
Contingency plans should be made and there should be sufficient grit kept to do the job. If this hasn’t been done the question should be asked, Why not? It’s not the workmen, it’s the overpaid bureaucrats, those with shiny bottoms on their trousers who need to sort out such problems. It surely isn’t rocket science as our Continental Cousins seems to cope quite well.
There is a military maxim,’Proper Planning Prevents Pathetic Performance.’ Maybe the Cheif Minister can point this out to the Minister with responsibilty for clearing the roads.
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Talk about a bunch of grumps! I bet the majority of you are the ones that moan about the traffic on the roads when the kids are at school so just enjoy an extra day or two of no traffic jams.
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Last year when there was a threat of snow, the schools stayed open. This prompted an avalanche (excuse the pun) of complaints and critism, probably from the same people who are complaining today that they have been closed.
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No 10 Bella – Funny you should say that because I said the same in our office yesterday.
And I got “look at the chaos we are in, proof of global warning”
To which I said ” you mean, it’s snowing? In winter? What ever next?”
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Well, St Michaels managed to open. I wonder if thats because all the yummy mummies drive 4x4s?
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10 & 20
Advocates of global warming as a theory may point out that ‘global warming’ doesn’t actually mean constant warmth..
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No10 Bella – 2009 was the 5th warmest year since records began.
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Run for your lives….we,re all going to die!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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slushed
Posted January 6, 2010 at 12:21 pm
No10 Bella – 2009 was the 5th warmest year since records began.
Records have been collected over what? 200 years?
This planet has existed for 4.54 Billion years!!
Are you getting the picture yet?
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Anyone remember 1983/84 forgotten which year when we all got an island wide alert to leave our place of work and go home?
it was about 2 pm.
All hell was let loose as we were told we would be stuck at our work places over-night unless we left straight away.
What a nightmare driving back to town.
A ten minute drive took me 4 hours,just to get to 5 oaks and another hour to get down ST Saviours hill into town.
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Tobias 9
How come no mater what the story is about these threads always turn to people who aren’t from Jersey, there appears to be an undercurrent of racism to anybody not born here which grows daily
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I actually enjoy a good dump of snow and I am little cheesed off that the Met Office forecast heavy snow and all we have got so far is a light dusting.
If they can forecast acurately then I wish they would rather than create hysteria over something that very rarely ever happens in Jersey.
It’s not rocket science…..well, perhaps it is a bit.
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If all you disgruntled folk disagree with the responsible pro-action the States in Jersey decided upon to close the schools then there’s always a boat in morning – if you’re lucky!
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‘What happened to the global warming then?
In October we were told it would be a mild winter.
Same with the hottest summer ever.
No doubt the “experts” will come out with some excuse or other.’
One cold winter does not invalidate the fact that climate change will occur as a result of us dumping hundreds of millions of tons of extra carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
The real questions are how quickly and how severe the changes will be.
In the worst case of around 3C over a hundred years or so it could result in the deaths of hundreds of millions and cause the complete collapse of society as we know it.
And sticking your head in the sand won’t make it go away!
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The over-reaction is somewhat pathetic. For starters ‘heavy’ snow? Who regards what has fallen here as ‘heavy’?
Schools should not have closed, if it wasn’t safe for some kids to travel (because parents would have to drive them) then that’s a matter for the parents, but the kids that can walk to school would still be perfectly able to walk to school. Why does some pupils not being able to make it to school mean the school shuts? Sometimes our fellow pupils couldn’t get in because they had to take the bus from another town and the buses were off due to flooding, school still went ahead with the rest of us.
As for the driving issues, it goes to show that there is a lack of driving skill in Jersey compared to other parts of the world. Maybe skid control lessons would be a good idea over here, you get natural practice on the mainland every winter but clearly not so here.
Do people actually know about which gears to use in certain conditions? or the fact that you need to lower your speed a bit? or that you might want to change your route?
Jersey may not get snow but as far as I can tell you get ice most years, and it has apparently been the cause of the accidents, so is there really any excuse?
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#28 If everyone who disagreed with the States left the island? Well, I think you know what the result would be. Nevermind that some people knew their school was closing LAST night, before snow had even fallen, interesting!
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#24
Not in my lifetime.
This summer was average.
They most likely are talking about the last ten years or feeding us more propaganda to suit.
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At least this weather is good for killing all known bugs at least is usually does in my garden.
Saves me the job of disinfecting my compost with jeyes.
Maybe it will kill off the spores and blight that affected my toms in august.
one can only hope!
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I,m with you frosty i was all hyped up for a good dumping of snow too and like the met office said heavy snow which so far has failed to turn up. The symbols on the jep website weather keep changing by the minute.The same happens in the summer too ,see a sunny symbol then all of a sudden its a cloud symbol!
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I would be surprised if our Met Dept could forecast tomorrow’s weather in the Saraha Desert accurately.
Where is my heavy snow!!!
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Tobias 9
To be fair; as a teenager who has recently moved back to the mainland but lived in Jersey for 8 years, it is true.
As i’m sure you’ve read in the paper, seen on the tv or heard about the cancellations of flights – England is going through quite extreme weather conditions.
I was shocked though at how regardless of the snow here in the East Anglia region; the buses still ran and schools and colleges attempt to stay open. I can actually say through experience the snow in Jersey is nothing compared to here and yet life doesn’t grind to a halt.
So comments like you’ve made have no real point; just point out the blunders and stupidity of the Island and certain individuals.
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hahahahhahaha, what a joke, a little bit of snow, and everyone make a big deal out of it!! just walked to work, cars sliding all over the place, peeps falling over, i love it, i hope we get more
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On a much more important matter.
Has anybody been hit by a snowball yet !!?!! Got one in the ear first thing from the little ones. FANTASTIC !!!!!!!
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we have 6 inches of snow where i live in the UK, no buses are running, roads are closed as well as the schools, but people are walking to work
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Nice try but I would say that last night’s effort was ‘moderate’, not heavy, snow fall. Not good, or heavy enough.
I look forward to tonight’s effort.
Can anyone smell carrots?
F. Snowman
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…….You should be thankful you don’t live in Dublin.
We had 0.5cm of snow and Dublin came to a stand still !
A normal 1 hour bus journey home, turned into a 4 hour marathon.
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It is a disgrace that the States can let the Island come to almost a stand still due to a minimal amount of snow. They should have made contingency plans to deal with situations like this. Why not pay farmers and building contactors who have tractors and JCBs to help out, clearing the snow and putting down salt or grit.
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Totally agree no (43) in fact why not use the residents of HM La Moye to clear the roads and get them to help out particularly near Old Peolples Homes! It would mean dragging them away from their play stations and Sky TV though!!!!
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No 42, pretty much everything certainly has come to a standstill in Ireland in more ways than that. Its not a recession its a depression over there. A lesson for any country not to base its economy on financial services and a commercial/residential property bubble.
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Schools should NOT open in these conditions it is far too dangerous for children to be driven in cars or go on buses. If we opened the Schools for children walking to work how would the staff get there?People have suggested that schools open to children in that area but how would that work in the times of “health and Safety” mania? The traffic especially on the hills is tretcherous enough for the few cars with people insisting they drive. Can you imagine everyone driving their children to school and joining the chaos? The schools have all set up VLE’s on their websites so if theres a real problem with children not “learning” then they can do some work online and email it in to school. Personally i feel the children can learn a great deal in the snow, like how to built a snowman and have fun! think of it like science and P.E!
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No 44, I would go further. Anybody not born over here and who hasn’t lived here continuously for 20 year should be obliged to do at least 20 days in that 20 year period of community service including snow clearing and green lane gritting as part of the requirement for housing qualifications. Makes perfect sense.
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Why do all the buses cease to operate when there is a tiny bit of snow in Jersey?I can understand it is difficult for them to manage hills but why not at least run a service from town to St Aubin as this is the busiest route anyway and no hills involved?Before someone shouts out that people can walk not everyone is capable of walking a couple of miles.
And could the people who like to moan on about 4X4′s have a day off for a change as their comments are often rather pathetic and tend to make them sound a little bit envious as they obviously associate their owners with being wealthy which isn’t necessarily the case.
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Frenchie # 44. The States Couldn’t possibly use prisoners to clear the snow and ice, because of the serious health and safety issues. Just imagine if they slipped and fell onto a pavement or road, they’d be able to sue the authorities. Plus of course it would be a breach of their human rights.
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Chaos???? Yeah, but its world class Chaos!
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If the children can go and play out in the snow,then surely they can go to school and back.There’s more chance of accidents with children playing out in the snow than there is of getting them to school and back.And public transport vehicles should be prepared for any type of weather at any time of the year..
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most 4×4 drivrers have been drinving well indeed I have seen a couple stopping to give lifts earlier in week, problem is the moronic minority who choose to drive like idiots because the conditions are bad. 4×4 ‘s ccan crash too, one on Tuesday night.
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In defence of Conex.
If we had 6″ of snow on the ground I would expect them to fit snow chains and supply a service.
As it is we have roads with 2″ in some places and 0″ in others.
A fully laden Bus, aprox 15 /20 tonnes running on snow chains with no snow would be an ideal way of smashing up the road surfaces.
15 / 20 tonnes of bus + 40 odd souls sliding downhill on ice into a bus queue does not sound too good either.
If the States were to spend enough money to keep our roads clear in unusual weather conditions as we have now, I for one would not like the increase in my taxes.
This happens once in every 5 odd years ? Stop moaning and enjoy it
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4×4 drivers, beware driving on snow if you don’t know how.
Decelerating from speed when in 4 x 4 can cause the front wheels to act as the main braking force, and encourage the rear end to slide out and overtake the front (whoops). This is especially so if the vehicle is usually used on the road in 2 x 4 as the sharp swipes(tread / edges) of the rear tyres can be worn more rounded than the front.
AND whatever you do “remember” stopping a 4 x 4 on ice is as difficult as stopping a similar 2 x 4, maybe even worse as the former is usually heavier and has more inertial momentum.
4 x 4 is great for traction when accelerating in poor grip situations, but not much more.
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No.47 Who do you propose to supervise the gritting/snow-clearing carried out by those not born in Jersey and with less than 20 years residency?
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Leah what about black ice etc? I tried to walk my daughter to nursery yesterday to find that we went flying not 5 minutes from our flat which meant i turned around and took her home as it wasnt safe.
As for children playing in the snow why not let them?? its not as if we have snow all the time over here, and again snow isnt the worry its ICE!
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Takethebiscuit asks:
“No.47 Who do you propose to supervise the gritting/snow-clearing carried out by those not born in Jersey and with less than 20 years residency?”
That would have to be a J cat post, of course.
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Having owned 4×4 since I learnt to drive, I currently have three and my son two. PLEASE do remember the 4×4′s do not allow you to defy the laws of physics, they normally have more bulk to be affcted by them. The golden rule is that 4 wheel drive can get you into twice as much trouble as two wheel drive. Check tyres, clean ALL windows BEFORE setting out and KEEP YOUR DISTANCE. ABS and all the other fancy gadgets now fitted do NOT make up for sensible driving. Get Home and stay safe.
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Our estate in Trinity was like sheet ice this morning and very dangerous. By 7.30am they were putting “handfuls”! of grit or salt on the roads (you could barely see it) – when we finally managed to get out we drove past both of the States establishments at the top of Trinity Hill and lo and behold there was a ton of visible grit that had been laid at their entrances! equality or what!! Nice to see we all get treated the same.
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PJG 53.
Granted, your ‘no-snow-roads-ruined-by-chains’ scenario holds up but, I find it hard to see how anyone can really defend a company (Connex) which fails to invest in a few sets of winter tyres…
C Le Verdic 57.
Good guess! ‘Takethebiscuit’ is probably a ‘J’ category…any guesses as to the category ’47′ belongs to?
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#26 Bella.
Just to refresh your memory the last big freeze was 1987. I remember it well as I gave birth to my first child just as the island shut down.
It was her birthday this week. So blame her for the cold.lol
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Born warrior, to avoid any misunderstanding, I meant the “post” as in position or vacancy rather than post to this thread!!! C.
C
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I think the differing opinions on whether schools close etc has to be a generational thing.
I’m in by 40′s and was at school in ’78 during what I can recall being the worst snow in my memory. I can recall not knowing whether we were walking on roads, hedges or fields, but the islands schools were still open for those who could/wanted to go, and a suprising amount of pupils teachers turned in.
For our younger generations I suppose this could be the worse snow they have seen. Reason enough to be cautious. For me personally, panic over nothing.
Roll on more white stuff, for the big kid in me:-)
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As someone else mentioned in a previous post- any particular reason for bashing anyone who isn’t jersey born & may be a J cat- do not forget that there are hard working nurses who are J cats and have not been here for 20 years and are the ones who are going to be looking after sick and elderly who have become even more vulnerable to this cold weather- shame on all of you & this is exactly why I am now nursing in Canada and not jersey!a bit of snow does not equal doomsday by the way!
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@35 and 36 Metcheck said it ws going to rain so at least Jersey Met hedged thier bets!
PJG @54 well said!
Now off to build snow creatures with the children
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I went to The Beeches, or De La Salle College, in the 60s and I can not recall anytime when we missed school through adverse weather. I can recall when we had snow and ice,in the mid 60s, some scallywag put water in the locks of one of the class rooms, so that when it froze, the teachers couldn’t open the building for a while.Then of course there were the inevitable snow ball fights on the playground.
Somehow I think the J.M.T. always managed to get us to school….not always popular in those days, as I am sure we would have preferred to have stayed at home.
I also recall using a sledge on the sand dunes when I wan’t at school. Health and safety? How do children learn about potential perils in life, by removing as many risks as possible? You can’t wrap society in cotton wool all the time.
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#61
Yes your right seen it in yesterdays paper.
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You know, everyone born in Jersey slags off the people who weren’t born here. But in reality, if all the ‘NON JSY’ people left the island, the island would be screwed. There’d be no one left.
And on the Snow note. JSY beans. . . Get a grip! It’s only about an inch and it lasts a few hours before it melts!
God help you all if there was ever a major environmental disaster, you’d all probably sit in a corner and rock.
Get some bottle. (Or some nuts, as Mr T would say)
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Whilst I agree that we are becoming more and more of a nanny state which wraps it’s children up in cotton wool, I do recall having several days off school throughout the 70′s and 80′s.
However, we are living in a time now where even the slightest accident prompts some parents to file law suits. I’m talking about parents who try and sue schools because their child fell off a climbing frame, or parents who call the police to report an assault cos their little darling had a minor scuffle in the playground.
I don’t blame the Ed Dept for closing the schools. The last they need is to have some parent filing a lawsuit cos their little darling slipped in the snow.
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C Le Verdic 62.
Sorry C, my mistake, I thought you were getting at the J cats (not that I’m one). It’s just that I have great respect for all workers, regardless of their job, race and how long they’ve dedicated to the lovely Island of Jersey and its inhabitants…
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Some interesting comments here. Connex can’t run the buses on snow or ice for three reasons. The buses are too wide for a lot of the roads, they know that if the driver has to take evasive action, (usually to avoid a non professional car driver), the left side of the bus is gonna be ripped open risking passenger injury. Chains WILL damage the roads and they can’t maintain a schedule anyway because the roads will be full of stuck vehicles. The gritters get stuck for the same reason.
BIG WELL DONE to the gritters by the way, my rig weighs 24 tonnes with a digger on the back and I’ve had no problems whatsoever largely thanks to you lot salting all the roads. With only seven(?)lightweight spreaders available that’s going some. WELL DONE GUYS!!
Liam the lifter
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Post 69 Mr Big Bean…Cor La ! Congratulations and hats off to thee,for hitting the nail right on the head.Nanny state is the understatement,us lot yer, in our lovely isles,like Britain have been well caught up in the “Health and safety” and
“human rights” and “sueing”and”claiming” bloney
madness!mostly imported from that whimpish place
called US of A,which has now sadly chomped its
way through our way of life,producing a society
most of which can not ,or will not accept responsibilities for their own actions.In Europe,they ask, “whats health and safety”?
taking tumbles,falling over,? in winter or anytime,so what,its called growing up for goodness sake,so grow up,its life,learn it,la.Bring on a real winter !
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#56 Sarah, I did mention ice, so I’m thinking maybe I’ve missed something?
I was led to believe that ice isn’t a new thing to Jersey.
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No 60, He is someone who, I know as we were both disgusted by that comment about manual labour from an earlier post, who was born in Jsy who was taking the mickey about Jsy’s regressive values. Perhaps we should reintroduce work houses and debtors prisons.
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To NON JSY (comment 68) You say ” everyone born in Jersey slags off the people who weren’t born here”.Sorry but this is obviously wrong as you don’t know everyone who was born in Jersey including me and personally most of the people I know in Jersey are non-locals and I have no problem with that whatsoever.I do however agree with the rest of your post as I now live in England and although we are not in one of the worst hit places we still have plenty of snow and icy roads to contend with.However schools have remained open,buses are running apart from to the most isolated villages and everyone is getting to work.But then I did live in Jersey long enough to know it is all different over there!!
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NON JSY (68) If you don’t like living in Jersey why don’t you go back home? No offence intended, but it’s the same case in Guernsey, if all you foreigners went back home, we’d have less traffic, less unemployment, more housing, etc. etc. etc.
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I am really fed up with the Jersey v Non Jersey arguement and the small minority or people, both Jersey and Non Jersey, who continually sling insults at the other.
And sweeping statements such as ‘everyone born in Jersey slags of people who aren’t born here’ such as the post by 68 NON JSY are as ridiclulous as the arguement itself.
I am Jersey Born and I, like most people I know welcome anyone to this little rock of ours just as long as they are willing to abide by its laws and contribute to society like the rest of us. Just as I have been expected to do when I have lived elsewhere.
What I object to are the people who jump straight off the boat or plane, and then start slagging off locals just because things are different here.
So, please, to all those embroilled in this petty arguement, to those from Jersey, lets be a little warmer and welcoming to our guests who, lets face it we depend on in certain areas, and to all those not from this rock, you are very welcome, but please don’t insult my island, my culture or my heritage.
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tom tom 74.
NOOOW I get it! I’m just back from 2 weeks in the Dolomites and the low temperatures must have affected my ‘sense of irony’…but I am thawing out…slowly!
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god damn the states for not having the power to stop the weather. lets face it. we are all going to revel in the fact we have had days off, we will enjoy them and later in the year reminice about them. who cares if the kids dont go to school, if its that much of a hinderance, dont have kids
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#68 You couldn’t be more wrong. I’ve met people born in Jersey and they really don’t give a hoot as long as those that come into the island obey the laws, pay their way and don’t make the kind of xenophobic and insulting comments often seen on here by people NOT born in Jersey about people that WERE born in Jersey.
And get off your high horse, if everyone that wasn’t born in Jersey (that includes me) left, the island would still run, it would just be different. Who’s to say that would be worse or better? We’ll never know.
#77 is right, you should never move somewhere and start insulting the culture or heritage, it just makes you pathetic, and it will, in time, make you unwelcome. Some non-Jersey born clearly are very welcome here so maybe those that feel unwelcome should ask themselves if it is something they are doing?
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The chain of responses seems to have moved away from theme of heavy snow and the chaos it causes.
My mother was from Jersey, but was evacuated in 1940 due to the impending occupation. I was therefore born in the U.K., but moved to the Island in 1952, when I was about 18 months old. I lived and worked in Jersey for most of my life, except for a number of years in H.M. Forces. When I professed to be a Jerseyman, I was frequently told I couldn’t lay claim to being a native of Jersey, as I’d been born outside the Island. I don’t think it matters if you are Jersey born, or whether you speak Jèrriais, what matters is what people do for the Island.
Many of us – myself included – criticise the Island’s authorities, but that’s because I care about Jersey and what is happening there. It was a wonderful place and I have many happy memories of living there.
If you want to know about the problems caused by snow and ice, well where I live in the U.K., I have been without water for two days and have had to collect water for the toilet cistern from a nearby stream. The light dusting of snow experienced by the Island shouldn’t have brought so much chaos…..life is an adventure and coping with snow is all part of life’s rich tapestry.
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#81 Well put Blue Knight.
I don’t like it when people who have chosen to come here, because it’s better than where they lived before, criticise the island. Someone accused me of doing that last night, however, I was criticising a specific law that applies to me being here but would not apply to my partner had he moved to Scotland to be with me. Indeed it was less a criticism and more pointing out a blatant inequality. I like Jersey but I wouldn’t be here were it not for my partner.
As long as you pay taxes you have a right to criticise the services that your taxes pay for without being told there’s a boat in the morning
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Now are you sitting down, I’m about to defend Connex, or rather the bus drivers. We are good, but not supermen, the laws of physics still apply. During this week, I have refused to take a bus along part of a route until it was gritted. A 6 3/4 ton tobogan is not a fun ride! Why? Because I’m selfish, I’d rather you explain to your boss why you are late or can’t get in, than me explain to a Corener why you are dead.
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Tony B 83.
I don’t think commuters blame the bus drivers for one moment, but many of them are a little vexed with the individuals who run Connex!
How can anyone blame you for protecting yourself and your passengers? Your bosses should be thankful to you for being so wise. Furthermore, for the safety of all, Connex should invest in some new-generation snow tyres before even asking their drivers to take the buses out on hazardous roads.
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OK, so #83 decides to drive his bus in the snow and someone gets injured. Long after the snow has melted, the legal fall out will be rumbling along, #83 loses his licence and his job !
Or fit studded snow tyres to all of the busses and keep them running! Result, people get to work, but we then spend the next six months resurfacing the roads torn up by the use of studded tyres !
The decision, my freinds to do relatively little and suffer the economic consequenses and disruption for a couple of days is the right one in my book.
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Heavy snow expected?….yep for sure in the artic circle and proberly some parts of russia
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Warren J 85
New-generation snow/winter tyres don’t have studs, therefore, do not cause any damage whatsoever to road surfaces…
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Well at least the JEP will have something to talk about.4cm of snow and we had 7pages of it in the JEP!
Bella, global warming do not means local warming and one year of cold weather do not change the fact that the earth is going through GLOBAL warming
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Born Warrior #84
Yes, snow tyre are good, but very “expensive”.
These tyres are also unsuitable and experience rapid wear when used on roads in normal conditions, and to say the least, the ride is uncomfortable.
They can not be fitted in 15 minutes by the driver on the side of the road.
In advance of inclement weather the wheels have to be removed by mechanics and the snow tyres fitted by tyre fitters. When the weather improves the process is reversed. From our recent experiences they would have been on and off at least 3 times in a fortnight.
All this is very good and reasonable if the bus service was in an area where conditions such as we have once every 5 years were for 3 months every winter.
I think I am still right in saying its best to stay at home and enjoy what is for Jersey “Extremely unusual conditions”.
The kids can enjoy a few days off and the teachers could of had their strike.
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Why did CONNEX shut down when it was raining. What are they on ? one driver stoped at five oaks just passed the pub (for about 1 hour) on his way to st Mnt and made all the traffic coming from St Helier drive on the other side of the road to pass him. The tail back went all the way to the tunnel. I personally waited over a minute to pass the stationary bus because of oncoming traffic.
Shame on CONNEX for stoping the buses in the rain/sleet and leaving thousand of kids and commuters to walk home in the damp drizzly stuff
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PJG 89.
Yes, it’s great to stay at home for a couple of days (for those who can) and the youngsters certainly love being off school but, some people are totally dependent on public transport and Connex should provide it.
You are right when you say that new-generation snow tyres are expensive but slightly mistaken when you say they are ‘hard to change’…and remember, we’re not talking ‘ordinary-man-on-the-street’ here….we’re talking ‘Bus company’!
Furthermore, snow tyres provide the same driving comfort on snow-free roads as they do on snow and ice (I know I’ve used them in Sweden and Austria). As for wear, well, Jersey buses would need them for about two weeks a year…how much wear is that?
I don’t wish to criminalize Connex, however, you must admit they’ve put on a very poor show.
And I’m amazed that the drivers even accept to take their ‘ill-prepared’ buses out, so “Well done lads for trying”…but don’t allow your bosses to put your safety and that of your passengers at risk, ‘DEMAND’ snow tyres and be ready for next time…whenever that will be!
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#88
Has anyone noticed the term global warming has been quietly dropped recently?
It has been replaced with climate change,so if the world warms up,cools down or indeed stays the same,it will still be our fault and we will have to go on paying more and more green taxes.
just one question,when the last ice age ended,what caused the climate change then?
There were no cars,planes,or coal-fired power stations
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It was the Mammoths, Bella.
They vented too much methane!
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