14 January (Part 1) - The future may not be bright
One of Bexley Council’s money saving plans is to push as many services as
possible on line. I am not hopeful that it will be a success although I confess
my doubts are based on what I have seen in Newham. Residents there must rent a
broadband connection, own a computer and know how to use it or they are totally
cut off from council services.
My 95 year old aunt can no longer meet the third requirement and so in theory is
unable to have visitors who need to come by car. Visitor permits are only
available via the web, no exceptions whatsoever. Fortunately she does not need
any form of domiciliary care but that would be impossible too because the support staff are
not exempted from the Controlled Parking Zone regulations. Maybe Bexley council
will not be so stupid but I wouldn’t count on it.
Bexley’s Digital Future Sub-Committee met last night (first
meeting reported here) and I
had planned to be there. Unfortunately the local Traders’ Association called one
of their occasional meetings and its chairman has persuaded me to take on the
job of secretary. I am therefore reduced to reporting yesterday’s Digital Future
meeting based on the Agenda.
It is encouraging to see that system tests will involve focus groups. Maybe they
will recruit a 95 year old?
Councillors are not unanimously in favour of all their own papers going
electronic only. Like me, some find that when reading from the paper page the
comprehension factor rises higher than when staring at a screen.
It is proposed that residents should open a single account providing access to
council tax, library, leisure, garden waste parking and adult social care
services and the log on will be via one’s Twitter and Facebook account if preferred. I
managed to register a service via Twitter last month on my third attempt. I paid
my money but have not managed to log back in again. I find it impossible to navigate
the web on a smart phone too. As a Digital Dinosaur I may be in a minority but I doubt I am alone.
Probably the law of unintended consequences will be much in evidence once the
changes begin to bite but a website redesign should be beneficial. It’s
difficult to imagine anything could be worse than Bexley Council’s present one.
The Traders’ meeting was in some ways more attractive than Councillor Rob
Leitch’s Digital Future. It is held in a pub and is fewer than ten minutes
walk away. Last night it would have been twice as long by car.
Thanks to the Barnehurst landslip (now in its third day) and commuters taking alternative routes, the
roads around Abbey Wood station were gridlocked.
Traffic in Abbey Road was queued back to Lesnes Abbey because those wishing to
turn right into one way Wilton Road were blocked by people parked and awaiting
the arrival of the next train. No one could exit into Gayton Road or
Florence Road because Florence Road was going nowhere due to the
aforesaid queue in Abbey Road which blocked right turns.
Those with local knowledge who took the alternative route via Fendyke and Fossington Roads met the same problem at its exit.
The perfect log jam and I shudder to think what it will be like when Crossrail
attracts the forecast 20,000 passengers an hour.
Unusually I was not carrying my camera last night and this morning’s chaos was not nearly as bad.
Frustratingly, the chairman of the Traders’ Association was unavoidably called away, so the meeting was cancelled
and deferred until next Wednesday. I could have gone to Digital Futures after all.