I write from the island state of Richmond-upon-Thames. For weeks we’ve been cut off from the outside world, the Burma-of-Britain, our only source of exterior communication the internet or phone. Road transport links have been cut, including buses.
It’s all because the water people are digging up our roads to fix leaky pipes. But instead of staggering the water works – fix one road before digging up the next – they’re doing it all at once. And instead of doing these roadworks fast, they’re doing them with the same urgency that Gordon Brown shows in calling a general election.
Roadworks: the domino effect
Of course, we’re all used to roadworks in Britain. Our roads are dug up more than a child’s sandpit (and end up with a similar smoothness). We’re used to the gas people finishing a job and then the water people digging up the same patch of road before the telephone people then come along and have a further furrow. Then the cable TV people come along and have their turn.
Just as annoying is how long it takes. The most common sight in a British roadwork is an idle JCB. Weekend or night work is often deemed too expensive. At a hole in nearby Barnes, there is a sign to urge the public not to abuse the workmen; they’re doing their best so please be patient. Clearly residents have been venting their frustration.
The Japanese way of roadworks
Compare this with Japan. I was there earlier this year and outside my hotel, in the Ginza district of Tokyo, I noticed workmen arriving at about 8pm and the dreaded sound of the pneumatic drill commenced. A quick look outside my window at 10pm showed an army of workmen – maybe 100 people – beavering away under bright arc lights.
Next morning, I left the hotel at 8am. The work was finished. The traffic was flowing freely. Apart from the telltale sign of shiny black tarmac juxtaposed alongside the old grey stuff, there was no hint that men had been at work.
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