Dogs are blamed for deteriorating lampposts (From York Press)
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Dogs are blamed for deteriorating York’s lampposts
8:53am Tuesday 16th March 2010 in Letters
Street lighting engineer Ricky Watson with a new batch of lampposts at the City of York Council’s depot in James Street
DOGS spending a penny have left roads bosses spending a fortune – because the animals’ urine is destroying York’s lampposts.
A survey of the city’s streetlights has found many are in danger of falling over – and dogs are partly to blame.
City of York Council said dog urine was one of several things that can cause corrosion at the base of both steel and concrete lampposts.
Salt spread during winter gritting was also a factor, while gardeners can destabilise the columns by strimming grass near the bases.
The council is having to replace 80 street lights a year, at a cost of £1,000 a time and taxpayers will be footing the bill for years.
Andy Binner, the authority’s head of highway infrastructure, said planned testing, coupled with visual inspections, had shown a large number of lampposts needed replaced “immediately or within the next three years”.
He said: “The replacement of unsound columns continues to put huge pressure on the street lighting budgets and will continue to do so for a number of years.”
Ann Reid, the council’s executive member for neighbourhood services, said: “They basically have a lifespan and each year some become unstable. We cannot afford to replace on spec, so we have to do the testing and replace them from a limited replacement budget as and when we can.”
She said several years ago some lampposts had become so unstable that they could be pushed over by children, but that the problem was no longer so severe.
Coun Reid will consider a report into the issue at a meeting at Guildhall at 4pm on March 24.
Comments(35)
dodgydave
says...
9:00am Tue 16 Mar 10
Yorkshire Volunteer
says...
9:04am Tue 16 Mar 10
..... or after perhaps reading this they will add them tothe list?
Come on! Give us credit for some intelligence - things just wear out !
WA Boy
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9:14am Tue 16 Mar 10
Taken for a Mug
says...
9:16am Tue 16 Mar 10
Jam tomorrow
says...
9:25am Tue 16 Mar 10
All of the above problems are what a normal European lamp post should be designed to withstand.
sciencefan
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9:46am Tue 16 Mar 10
Why can't we have a competent council?
Silver
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9:46am Tue 16 Mar 10
Geoffers
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9:47am Tue 16 Mar 10
Why isn't dog urine resistance part of the spec?
jez b
says...
10:33am Tue 16 Mar 10
sciencefan wrote:Well said, Lib Dem CYC and competent don't really go together though.
Sounds to me like CYC blaming everyone else for their lack of proper and timely maintenance. Sounds to me like a senior member of council staff failing to do their job and then blaming "budgets". Why can't we have a competent council?
Garrowby Turnoff
says...
11:11am Tue 16 Mar 10
AngryandFrustrated
says...
12:02pm Tue 16 Mar 10
jez b wrote:Well said!
sciencefan wrote: Sounds to me like CYC blaming everyone else for their lack of proper and timely maintenance. Sounds to me like a senior member of council staff failing to do their job and then blaming "budgets". Why can't we have a competent council?Well said, Lib Dem CYC and competent don't really go together though.
As for solving the problem, and working on the assumption that galvanised lamp posts are as rare as hen's teeth (because surely no council could buy posts that were not fit for purpose, could they?!!!), the problem needs to be solved.
Perhaps as a way to reduce the budget deficit the Lib Dums keep moaning about, the Executive could volunteer themselves, strictly on a rota basis of course, to stand at selected dog walking points around York - the dog walkers of this fair city, upon payment of a small fee, could then avoid the lamp posts and head straight for the designated official, thereby alleviating some of the stress caused to said damaged lamp-posts whilst at the same time raising money for the council coffers.
The citizens of this city, who have been p****d on for years by this great council could then have a small element of revenge, whilst raising money for public services!!
yorknights
says...
12:24pm Tue 16 Mar 10
BL2
says...
12:26pm Tue 16 Mar 10
AngryandFrustrated wrote:Maybe you could extend this to York residents - that would solve the problems of Yorks public toilets! :-)
jez b wrote:Well said!
sciencefan wrote: Sounds to me like CYC blaming everyone else for their lack of proper and timely maintenance. Sounds to me like a senior member of council staff failing to do their job and then blaming "budgets". Why can't we have a competent council?Well said, Lib Dem CYC and competent don't really go together though.
As for solving the problem, and working on the assumption that galvanised lamp posts are as rare as hen's teeth (because surely no council could buy posts that were not fit for purpose, could they?!!!), the problem needs to be solved.
Perhaps as a way to reduce the budget deficit the Lib Dums keep moaning about, the Executive could volunteer themselves, strictly on a rota basis of course, to stand at selected dog walking points around York - the dog walkers of this fair city, upon payment of a small fee, could then avoid the lamp posts and head straight for the designated official, thereby alleviating some of the stress caused to said damaged lamp-posts whilst at the same time raising money for the council coffers.
The citizens of this city, who have been p****d on for years by this great council could then have a small element of revenge, whilst raising money for public services!!
invisibleman
says...
12:54pm Tue 16 Mar 10
Silver
says...
12:58pm Tue 16 Mar 10
invisibleman wrote:£1000 but if you buy it and it last 20 years. Thats only £50 a year which I find rather cheap.
Even if the lamposts are galvenised, when exposed to conditions that could result in the galvanised coating being chipped off, such as lawnmowers and gritting, the steel underneath won't stand a chance. In the old days lamposts where made from cast iron, which is a lot less corrosive than rolled mild steel plate, but most of these where probably taken away during the war. The best and safest answer is to use the new aluminium collapsable lamposts, but they are very expensive - although £1000 for a lampost is a bit shocking (unless it includes labour charges for erection)
invisibleman
says...
1:04pm Tue 16 Mar 10
Silver wrote:Yeah I guess so, still a grand for a bit of steel tubing with a wire through it and a light fitting on top.
invisibleman wrote: Even if the lamposts are galvenised, when exposed to conditions that could result in the galvanised coating being chipped off, such as lawnmowers and gritting, the steel underneath won't stand a chance. In the old days lamposts where made from cast iron, which is a lot less corrosive than rolled mild steel plate, but most of these where probably taken away during the war. The best and safest answer is to use the new aluminium collapsable lamposts, but they are very expensive - although £1000 for a lampost is a bit shocking (unless it includes labour charges for erection)£1000 but if you buy it and it last 20 years. Thats only £50 a year which I find rather cheap.
Ghost of Oscar Deutsch
says...
1:11pm Tue 16 Mar 10
'And what do you do for a living?
'Well I study the effect of dog urine on lamp post deterioration!'
I think some external consultant is having them on.
What are these dogs p*issing? Sulphuric Acid!
Typical of YCC blaming the section of York residents that can't answer back...
Never have an article that contains references to both urine and YCC!
alfie
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1:21pm Tue 16 Mar 10
alfie
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1:21pm Tue 16 Mar 10
jez b
says...
1:32pm Tue 16 Mar 10
Ghost of Oscar Deutsch wrote:YCC would blame anyone they possibly could to avoid having to own up to their own uselesness.
Who studies this? Must be a great career choice.. 'And what do you do for a living? 'Well I study the effect of dog urine on lamp post deterioration!' I think some external consultant is having them on. What are these dogs p*issing? Sulphuric Acid! Typical of YCC blaming the section of York residents that can't answer back... Never have an article that contains references to both urine and YCC!
pedalling paul
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2:55pm Tue 16 Mar 10
jez b
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3:12pm Tue 16 Mar 10
LittleTed
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4:09pm Tue 16 Mar 10
humpty numpty
says...
5:15pm Tue 16 Mar 10
LittleTed wrote:hiya Ted, i encouraged several racegoers to pee on your dogs. the "save the no entry sign" campaign needs more bursting spirited members of the public to pee on Teds dogs. form an orderly que!
I have several dogs and I encourage them to pee on racegoers.
LittleTed
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5:48pm Tue 16 Mar 10
Kynnersley
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6:38pm Tue 16 Mar 10
old_geezer
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6:45pm Tue 16 Mar 10
As Silver says, surely to goodness any council would only buy posts designed and guaranteed to last for decades like Victorian cast iron ones? Not a Pound Shop version that keeps this year's budget down!!
Silver
says...
8:10pm Tue 16 Mar 10
old_geezer wrote:Its the simplicity of it, they're gonna cost you either way get something that'll last. If we made a big deal and the council said its that or dogs pee will knock them door and they last. I'd like to think we'd say oh right
Some years ago one collapsed from base corrosion and several more were wonky along the Fulford Road riverside path. This wasn't road salt or strimmers. As Silver says, surely to goodness any council would only buy posts designed and guaranteed to last for decades like Victorian cast iron ones? Not a Pound Shop version that keeps this year's budget down!!
uglyboy
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9:47pm Tue 16 Mar 10
I presume that these sleeves are still on the market.
King Edward
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9:48pm Tue 16 Mar 10
evelyn_trent
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10:58am Wed 17 Mar 10
Ghost of Oscar Deutsch
says...
1:13pm Wed 17 Mar 10
'they might was well blame the pigeons!'
Nah that's next months excuse for potholes in the road :¬)
Pigeon s*it melts tarmac!
moneyforwhat
says...
1:26pm Wed 17 Mar 10
evelyn_trent wrote:ha ha...I was hoping this would be remarked. Honestly though as to the content of this story and the many brilliant comments it has attracted - you couldn't make this up could you? What else could be contributed - there's anti-thief paint. Would rubberoid paint assist - who would measure how far up the post they would need to paint? Would it be the person who completed the other study? It's a dogs life (or the dogs b***c*s) innit?
So is it just lamp-posts? What about street signs and traffic lights?
Zebedee
says...
7:41pm Mon 22 Mar 10
Robert Davro says...
8:56am Tue 16 Mar 10