Council Grass Cutting / Grounds Maintenance

Council Grass Cutting / Grounds Maintenance

Author
Discussion

Mabbs9

1,397 posts

233 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
Councils trying to save money. Good. Mow the edges, keep it safe. Let nature come back a bit. Sterile and mown is fine for small areas but the world will be grim if we beat nature to submission. What's next? AstroTurf the verges?

Spare tyre

11,323 posts

145 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
It would appear that the drains here don’t get cleaned periodically, now only when it is reported

The road outside ours has all blocked drains (oaks trees), road is a big puddle once it’s been raining for 20 minutes in the wetter months.

Road is now breaking up quickly, bus stop people get splashed

When you report it, after 5 or 6 attempts, they come and do a single drain, rather than work in a sensible method of doing them all

ThingsBehindTheSun

2,037 posts

46 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
Everything is falling into rack and ruin now, the councils and government are using net zero to avoid spending any money.

Funny how they had a limitless budget and wasted hundreds of billions when it came to Covid. Just imagine how great everything would be if they spent that money on the NHS, Dentists, Schools and the Roads.


Mr E

22,478 posts

274 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
I struggled to join a fast A road on Saturday because I couldn’t see over the grass.

The Gauge

4,740 posts

28 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
…and there’s more spending cuts to come.

Personally I’m a big fan of leaving grass verges and park grass uncut. My local park cuts around the edges of fields so there’s a feeling of space when walking on the paths, and it gives space for dogs to run off the lead etc. Looks beautiful when they mow a winding path through the long uncut grass.

Silvanus

6,882 posts

38 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
ThingsBehindTheSun said:
Everything is falling into rack and ruin now, the councils and government are using net zero to avoid spending any money.

Funny how they had a limitless budget and wasted hundreds of billions when it came to Covid. Just imagine how great everything would be if they spent that money on the NHS, Dentists, Schools and the Roads.
It's not the concept that's the problem, it's the implementation. Long grass, wild flowers and thicker hedges aren't a problem if managed correctly. Councils should still be carrying out maintenance, mowing adjacent to junctions and cutting back around signs and street lighting. The issue is many don't. The idea, when carried out properly, is sound.

Allan L

799 posts

120 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
Silvanus said:
It's not the concept that's the problem, it's the implementation. Long grass, wild flowers and thicker hedges aren't a problem if managed correctly. Councils should still be carrying out maintenance, mowing adjacent to junctions and cutting back around signs and street lighting. The issue is many don't. The idea, when carried out properly, is sound.
There was a piece in Saturday's Times about how a loss of sight-line had resulted in a fatal collision with a motor-cycle.

Silvanus

6,882 posts

38 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
Allan L said:
Silvanus said:
It's not the concept that's the problem, it's the implementation. Long grass, wild flowers and thicker hedges aren't a problem if managed correctly. Councils should still be carrying out maintenance, mowing adjacent to junctions and cutting back around signs and street lighting. The issue is many don't. The idea, when carried out properly, is sound.
There was a piece in Saturday's Times about how a loss of sight-line had resulted in a fatal collision with a motor-cycle.
So is that bad concept or poor implementation, or maybe even bad driving/riding. Possibly a combination.

Frogmella

294 posts

105 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
I was just back in the UK properly for this first time in 5 years or so. In my part of the world (Co Durham) the road verges were all incredibly overgrown.

Roads that I knew like the back of my hand were a little tricker to drive to be honest, I couldn't see around the corners as well as I could and should. It felt a little unsafe. Looked pretty though.

And don't get me started on the potholes, FML. My nephews estate just got resurfaced last year and it's all coming apart and is like a farm track. How the council do not have protections against poor workmanship is staggering.

Bearings

62 posts

157 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
Silvanus said:
Allan L said:
Silvanus said:
It's not the concept that's the problem, it's the implementation. Long grass, wild flowers and thicker hedges aren't a problem if managed correctly. Councils should still be carrying out maintenance, mowing adjacent to junctions and cutting back around signs and street lighting. The issue is many don't. The idea, when carried out properly, is sound.
There was a piece in Saturday's Times about how a loss of sight-line had resulted in a fatal collision with a motor-cycle.
So is that bad concept or poor implementation, or maybe even bad driving/riding. Possibly a combination.
Call me a cynic but I suspect it's an easy double-win for councils.... slow traffic down to stop people diving out across roundabouts and also cut back on basic road-furniture maintenance.....?

AC43

12,681 posts

223 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
BoRED S2upid said:
We take matters into our own hands here as we have those areas where you have your lawn, pavement, grass then road. Everyone cuts their grass bit as the council can’t be bothered.

I’m all for wild flower areas but if you don’t plant wild flowers you are just growing grass 3ft tall grass
We took over the council-owned area in the middle of our cul-de-sac as they couldn't be fking arsed (despite doing all the other ones in the area).

Cost a bit to start but now looks amazing and we keep in fed/cut/watered.

I wouldn't mind so if they didn't send round hugely expensive to produce magazines every few months telling us how many virtuous things they're doing.

I don't want virtue; I just want my streets maintained and my bins emptied.


119

11,742 posts

51 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
Our local council restarted cutting the beginning of June after the May hiatus.

This year they even did ours which I normally do!

I’ll probably get charged for it now I’ve said that.




spaximus

4,309 posts

268 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
Our local council last year did No Mow May which became Can't Be Arsed August before they got the mowers out.

Now I too love the look of the oft pictured wildflower verges in Rotherham (ISTR) but what we have here is none of that just none descript grass which the local dog walkers love as their "Fur babies" can have a dump and they cannot find it to clean up.

The local councils saved a heap of money from the use of equipment but when others asked what the employees were doing who normally cut the grass, they could not or would not explain.

councils used to have pride in the area but now they just say cuts or would you rather us not house OAP in need of care. They could do both

The Gauge

4,740 posts

28 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
spaximus said:
Our local council last year did No Mow May which became Can't Be Arsed August before they got the mowers out.
No mow May seems to now be regarded as a bad thing for wildlife as just as the insects move in the grass gets hacked killing them all. The advice now is to leave grass unmoved for much longer length of time.

It’s a strange fascination we have to desire constantly mowed grass, yet for some reason we do.

NRG1976

1,874 posts

25 months

Monday 1st July 2024
quotequote all
Net zero whilst allowing houses being built on green belt