Thanks for DFES efforts

Dear Echo News,

I live in what was the red zone of the last fire on the evening of New Years Eve and I had first-hand experience of the wonderful work DFES did then and I want to thank all concerned for their fantastic efforts, it was awe inspiring.

Leaving our house as recommended by DFES and going down the West Terrace hill with all the fire trucks passing us coming up the hill reminded us of the 9/11 coverage where it showed evacuees descending the stairs whilst the firemen went up it.

D Hodson

Kalamunda

Reducing pedestrian death toll

Dear Echo News,

Towns in Europe have decreased accidents and reduced pedestrian deaths to zero.

Can we copy the town of Cambridge?

They have managed to close one lane of traffic in both directions and put in a separated bike/personal EV path on their major roads?

In Midland we could start at Great Eastern Highway and the freeway and close one lane all the way to Victoria Street leaving a safe separated bike path each side of the road and a central lane for turning ie cut down to one lane in each direction and reduce the speed to 40kph (There must be a way of checking how many accidents on that stretch.)

From Victoria Street in both directions take away street parking on the left and establish a separated bike path to and from the station.

Again, single lane in the centre with turning lane on the right.

We could then replant street trees improving shade and the amenity all along Great Eastern Highway Midland like the Town of Cambridge has to meet the 30 per cent tree canopy cover set by WALGA.

Next the shire and state government should legislate roofing the car parks in the centre of the road and providing EV charging from all the rooftops to a shared VPP battery.

Labor could make the streets safer for our kids.

Reducing emissions and cooling and cleaning up the air we breathe.

Let’s make Midland the best liveable town in WA.

C Hughes

Midland

Dumped shopping trolleys

Dear Echo News,

Regarding the dumped shopping trolley mess.

Why do Mega stores like Woolworths, Coles, etc, not add a sensor to the trolleys that set off an alarm when a trolley is taken outside a certain area?

This would not be difficult and save them tens of thousands of dollars in lost trolleys that are simply dumped all over the suburb, making a suburb look like an untidy dumping ground.

An alternative would be for customers to be required to have an electronic sensor that would record the customer’s information so that they could be fined if the trolley is removed from the shopping centre precinct.

There has to be many ways to control this burgeoning dumping problem in our suburbs.

Perhaps the local councils should start fining the companies whose trollies are found outside the shopping centre precinct.

This may press them to do something.

At the moment, all they do is pass the cost losses on to all shoppers.

S Oliver

Ellenbrook