Our readers from across the borough give their weekly take on the biggest issues impacting Gedling and beyond.
Join the debate by sending your letter to letters@gedlingeye.co.uk . Please put ‘Letters’ in the subject line. You can also submit a letter by filling in the simple form below, and it may appear online.
Some letters refer to past correspondence which can be found by clicking HERE
Names and addresses will be withheld by request but must be included in the email. We reserve the right to edit letters. Letters published do not reflect the views of Gedling Eye
‘I would be great leader of new town board‘
Sir,
I see that a job is available for the chair of this new Carlton Town Board and I’d like to let you know: I would be the ideal candidate.
Rather than get some overpriced contractor or ‘consultant’ in, let me do it for free.
I know the area and I would keep the money away from Arnold, that’s for sure – as I have said previously you can’t polish a…
Carlton and Netherfield could be a proper borough capital if the money was spent appropriately there. The transport links are so much better than Arnold as you can get from City to Netherfield and Carlton in under five minutes via train. I can not imagine a business executive wanting to take a 25 minute ride to Arnold for a meeting.
£20m is a lot of money and could make a huge difference to these towns but my fear is we would get some ‘consultant’ in who would be swayed by local politicians and MPs who want to spend more cash in Arnold, despite their high street dying quicker than a Puriri moth
I await the phone call.
Ron Lim,
Carlton
MP ‘causing chaos’
Sir,
Michael Payne MP for Gedling is causing chaos and spreading misinformation amongst Gedling residents.
He had informed residents about option 4 and residents are now thinking there is a chance that Gedling Borough Council can stay as it is despite the Local Government Review.
He has totally got this wrong and by not correcting his constituents and stating an option 4 he is using smoke and mirrors to hide the fact that 1 of the 3 options is Gedling being merged into the City Boundary.
I expect better from our MP and feel this is very disingenuous of him to basically lie and try to pull the wool over residents eyes.
Cllr Darren Maltby
Gedling Borough Council
Fourth Trent bridge ‘badly needed’
Sir,
A fourth bridge is badly needed (Councillor leads drive for feasibility study on fourth road bridge over River Trent at Colwick – 13/03/25).
If one of the other bridges is out of action the roads turn into chaos. Lady Bay Bridge was closed (someone trying to commit suicide) and I had to leave my work in West Bridgford and go home to Gedling via Radcliffe on Trent, Shelford, Gunthorpe Bridge, Lowdham and Burton Joyce. It took me over an hour-and-a-half, as lots of traffic were also heading to their homes too.
Joan North
Gedling
Tram would bring extra jobs to area
Sir,
Following on from L Sanders letter regarding the tram (Tram to Gedling ‘much needed’ – Letters 20/03/25), the benefit would be better access to jobs and leisure activities through a quicker connection than buses.
It does not need to be profitable as the return on the investment is that it is an enabler for growth of the economy through taxes generated by the jobs. It is a proven fact that good transport networks attract new employers to an area.
Tram networks are only fully successful when they cover their urban area comprehensively which the present Nottingham network does not. The trams attract more travellers. The Phoenix Park park and ride site operated for a few years before the tram network opened, using buses. When the network opened the car park was doubled in size and I believe has been enlarged again since.
The fastest route from Netherfield to the QMC is by train and tram. The integrated ticket is provided by the Robin Hood card. There are two major problems for this quickest route. One is that the senior bus pass is not valid on the train. In London the over-60s can use their free pass on all forms of public transport in the London area. Why are we 2nd class citizens in this respect?
The other is the inadequate frequency of trains stopping at Carlton. There are two per hour pass through but only 1 per hour stops. For an urban area and compared to Beeston this is unacceptable. I suspect the train operator (micro managed by the Department of Transport) persists with this because there is no pressure from local politicians or Gedling Council to do anything about it fearing this might compromise the signing off of the tram extension. This is a misplaced concern if it exists. Beeston has a much more frequent train service which serves a different part of the area and a different market and still has a tram. Netherfield, Carlton, Gedling would be ditto.
A major change is coming to the train timetables in December with the Newark trains extending to Lincoln. Local politicians should be pushing for all trains to stop.
Geoff Jackson,
via email
Why not try fracking?
Sir,
With energy costs rising by the day, why don’t those opposed to “fracking” take a deep breath put ideology to one side and in the interest of the majority support a trial drill in Notts just to see if success can be achieved without damage to either residents or the environment?
Trump’s doing it so why don’t we!
Peter Rickaby,
Calverton
Hope info on birthplace helps
Sir,
In response to Mrs. Brenda Holdforth who was looking for information on her birthplace in Calverton (Trying to trace birthplace’ – Letters 20/03/25).
The ‘Bottom Buildings’ she may be referring to might actually be Bottom Farm where a family of Knights lived – or Windle Square, near the Gleaners Inn at the bottom of the Village.
Hope this info can help you.
Alun Tuck,
Arnold
