I only remember one post office in my whole borough that isn't also a store and that's a part-time thing operating from someone's house.Vorpal wrote: ↑9 Apr 2021, 4:03pm First of all, a post office is a service, not a store. If post offices are not going to be available to people within easy walking or cycling distance, more postal delivery services need to be restored, and people need to be able to buy stamps and special packaging within easy walking and cycling distance.
As for buying stamps locally, I guess you've not seen the changes of the last year, with Royal Mail having added doorstep collection services and made it easier to use print-at-home prepaid postage labels (which are the same as the post office label printers output). That's as well as the proliferation of courier pickup points at shops and automatic parcel cupboards at service stations and supermarkets. And the increase in online shopping means many people have lots of packaging, some of which is a nuisance to recycle (pretty much has to be taken to a big supermarket and we try to avoid those during covid, using collection or delivery services).
I agree with that but your previous statement seemed very different, excluding a load of small villages as "no good" for active travel measures: "On a related note, a general strategy for expected travel time to schools, shops, post office, and other essential businesses should be developed and supported with funding. It's no good supporting active travel, if it is done in by a village not having a nearby post office, nor public transport to get there."Secondly my statement is general, not necessarily meaning that every village should a bunch of nonviable small businesses, but that there is a balance between providing opportunities to shop or purchase goods, and the distance that people are willing to travel by active travel, public transport and/or some combination.
Drive. That's why I am a big supporter of the 20-minute neighbourhoods idea.If people have a choice between driving 20 minutes from a village into the closest town and using an hour or more on walking + public transport or cycling, what do you think they will do?
Even out here on the fens, that's not true. Surely more densely-populated Essex wasn't worse?Many 'neighbouring villages' have also lost their shops and post office.
Indeed, but it is great for daily shopping, while the more difficult items get delivered by the proliferation of weekly box services, the much-expanded grocery delivery services or a longer weekly trip to the nearest town.Even supposing there is one, many village shops have been downsized to the point that it can be difficult to purchase everything a family needs for meals for a week, let alone household goods or clothing.
Indeed and you're making my points for me. Where we disagree is that I am fairly sure from experience and tools like https://app.traveltime.com/ that almost all villages could have pretty decent daily shopping within a 20 minute cycle if the infrastructure was fixed to improve the "barrier roads" that the TravelTime app includes but almost no-one wants to cycle on or sometimes even cross. I feel that is less likely to happen if even cyclists keep posting that reconnecting villages is "no good" and keep pushing for millions and millions to be spent in towns and cities.It doesn't do any good to ensure that there is a brilliant network of pedestrian and cycling infrastructure connecting villages, if (as an example) people are unwilling to travel more than 20 minutes to do their shopping, and many/most people do not have shopping within a 20 minute walk or cycle.
I agree with that, I think.The same thing goes for schools. [...]