All change again for Station taxis?

Councillors are likely to consider a report about the possibility of moving the taxi rank from the front of Brighton Station to Terminus Road, alongside the station.

Nothing has yet been decided.

Chair of the council’s environment, transport and sustainability committee Cllr Gill Mitchell said:  “The dangerous situation at peak times in front of the station cannot be allowed to continue. It is unsafe for pedestrians, buses and taxis as well as spoiling the visual and environmental aspects of the station forecourt.  So I'm calling for a report to committee on November 24 to start a formal trial of using Terminus Road.

“Generally feedback was good when we used the road as a cab rank during the Station Gateway works.  But I’m keen any trial would include measures to mitigate isolated problems reported previously, including extra traffic using some streets.  We would also need properly to consult all interested groups including residents, the buses and the cab trade.”

The Dr.Helen Boyle plaque unveiling - video

See also:-
A Plaque for Dr.Helen Boyle
Other Photos

Aquarium Terraces development - 3

The design of the existing buildings on the terraces was poorly thought through. Between the edge of the promenade in Marine Parade and the unsightly roofing an inaccessible gully was created. It must always have been difficult to keep this free of litter and rubbish, but now that the site is largely derelict the problem is exacerbated,  The result is shown in the accompanying recent photos left and bottom.

Whatever one thinks of the latest proposals for the site they will at least, if approved and implemented, remove the unattractive roofing and eliminate the inaccessible gullies. 

Sections through the development with Marine Parade on right

The trade-offs are:- 

• The loss of some public access due to the creation of a private club.
• The momentary loss of the sea-view to pedestrians  by the development rising above Marine Parade.

A choice collection

The Conservation Advisory Group recommended refusal of the application. The Planning Committee may take a different view.

What no spire?

I am beginning to fear that this is it. This is what people at ground level will see for 99% of the time. Seen through a telephoto the i360 tower appears to have been capped off with a shallow dome, undetectable from the ground,  and a warning light. Only for brief periods, when the pod is poised at the top of the tower will the purpose of the tower be evident and the design of its finial irrelevant.  

The original design provided for the tower to be surmounted by  a vertical rotor wind turbine.  As well as providing some green power for the operation of the lift this would also have had the advantage of distinguishing the tower unambiguously from an oversize industrial chimney stack.

The wind turbine idea was dropped however due to fears of its effect on the wind dynamics of the tower. No equivalent visual substitute has so far been installed. As far as appearance goes the tower appears to be no longer in accordance with the plans approved.

A Plaque for Dr.Helen Boyle

Aldrington House, New Church Rd.

City Mayor, Cr. Linda Hyde performing the unveiling.

Today at Aldrington House, New Church Road, Hove, a plaque was unveiled to Dr. Helen Boyle, Brighton's first woman GP. Dr. Boyle founded the Lady Chichester Hospital for the Early Treatment of Mental Disorders which moved to Aldrington House in 1919. Dr. Boyle worked at the hospital until the NHS took over in 1948.
She died 9 years later at Pyecombe.

Dr. Boyle was a pioneering doctor and psychiatrist whose ground-breaking approach to treating mental illness changed the lives of countless working-class women and was critical to the acceptance that mental illness could be identified early and treated. She became the first female consultant psychiatrist at the Royal Sussex County Hospital and in 1939 the first woman president of the Medico-Psychological Association.

Dr. Boyle was also honoured for her war work in Serbia and the unveiling was attended by the Serbian Ambassador.