Monday, April 22, 2013

Trains And Boats And Planes

Trundling around the old Millionaires' Playground earlier, I thought I'd snap a few off. So here goes. I'll start with the trains...

Well, you would have seen trains there 100 years ago, as it used to be our lovely Ramsgate Sands station. Now it's a delightful row of, er, concrete sticks, part of the ever-to-be-constructed Royal Sands (aka Titanic) development of luxury dwellings, sanctioned by The Duffers. If you pop over to the developer's website, and have a spare two grand handy, you can put down a non-refundable deposit and look at an artist's impression of your splendidly appointed apartment. Which is probably all you'll ever get for your money.

Next some boats...

Oh dear! There don't seem to be any there either! In fact, as I've said before, I haven't seen a TransEuropa ferry in ages. Never mind, there are still some boats in the marina...

Then to cap it all, this thing flew over...


Hey-ho! Just another day in paradise!

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nice capture of the Tornado :-)

Richard Eastcliff said...

Aha! So that's what it was. Amazing what can be captured with a crappy smartphone camera!

derick97 said...

Well ahead of the MSM again richard
Well done

Anonymous said...

The unmarked jumbo jet and Cargolux over the towns again today.

Anonymous said...

I see Saul Leese has given us a glimpse of his true opinion of Ramsgate on Facebook. Where does he live?

Anonymous said...

Unmarked Jumbo? 2 x Cargolux 747s and a very marked World Airways MD11 came in. Nothing else big. A very marked Magma 747 departed.

Anonymous said...

What will people moan about once the port and airport are closed and gone? Presumably a lack of airport and port. I think I might get a head start.

"Why haven't those corrupt fuckers running TDC bothered to get our port/airport up and running. Its part of our heritage and they have simply allowed the isle to rot. Its a scandal"

Anonymous said...

The reason why TDC hasn't got the port and airport up and running is simple. They have no experience whatsoever of running a business, and it isn't and shouldn't be their job to do so. However, there is an important difference. For historical reasons the port is being run by the council. It is undoubtedly failing because of the council's ineptitude. The airport is in private hands and has been for many years. The airport is not failing because of the council's ineptitude. If it isn't "up and running" it's because it isn't economically viable.

Anonymous said...

The sooner these crappy cargo planes stop flying over the town the better. Where are the fines or impound them?

Anonymous said...

"Mr Jonathan Aitken (Thanet, South)
I am grateful to have been given the opportunity to initiate this Adjournment debate on a subject which is of enormous importance to my constituents, the economy of east Kent, and the transport system of Britain and Europe—the Ramsgate harbour access road. Ramsgate has an agreeable historical reputation of being a cheerful, regency seaside town whose picturesque royal harbour has long been a focal point for mariners, yachtsmen, holidaymakers, fishermen, artists, hoteliers and seaside landladies.

Those benign images are still valid to some extent, but over the past 15 years, the outer harbour of Ramsgate has been transformed by the creation of a major shipping port. Today, port Ramsgate is the third busiest port in Britain after Dover and London and the nation's second largest sea gateway to Europe. Some 6,500 ship and jetfoil berthings take place in Ramsgate annually. Over the past decade, the number of passengers using port Ramsgate each year has increased by almost 200 per cent. to 3.5 million. The number of cars has increased by more than 250 per cent. to 473,000. The number of freight lorries has increased by nearly 240 percent. to 261,000. The number of coaches has increased by nearly 100 percent. to 21,000.

To put it more simply, on average over 9,000 passengers and more than 2,000 vehicles, of which over 700 are heavy goods vehicles, pass on average through port Ramsgate every day. In the peak month of August, passenger numbers reached 15,000 per day while motor vehicles averaged 3,200 per day."


Hansard October 1995


That's progress for you from 1980.

Anonymous said...

3rd busiest UK port and Dreamland a top 10 tourist attraction. Spectacular failure. Promotions and pensions and payoffs and OBE's required.

Anonymous said...

Funny how everything that ends up in the hands of The Duffers dwindles and dies. They are the kiss of death.

Surely a local authority's duty is to put everything in place to allow private enterprise to make a go of things, not act as a substitute for private enterprise?

The port was a success in the 80s and 90s because it was in private hands. Since TDC took over, it has been in terminal decline (pun intended). TDC were happy for the income, but have less commercial sense than a pork sausage, so effectively they just sat on their hands, creamed off the money, and fiddled while it went into a managed decline.

Time to privatise the port and marina, methinks. I was going to say 'before it's too late', but sadly I think we've gone beyond that point.

If the port does go bust, they might at least have the decency to give us our sand back.

Anonymous said...

Please explain in what way Cargolux are using 'crappy planes'

Anonymous said...

1:52 Cargo planes ar eolder passenger planes so less safety, pollution etc. Please explain why they are flying over the town and where are the monitors.

Anonymous said...

Cargolux have modern fleet, some are brand new and therefore quieter

http:// www.planespotters.net/Airline/Cargolux-Airlines-International

They fly over the town as that is the alignment of the runway.

No legal requirement for monitors ...

Anonymous said...

Monitors are needed to fine them when they come in during the no night flights period. I will be putting in an FOI to see that the council is enforcing these fines.

Richard Eastcliff said...

Ooops! Sorry, I seem to have deleted a comment there by mistake! Something about the airport, was it?