Like other cities, Plymouth has needed to adapt as online shopping and out of town shopping developments have changed our shopping habits. Plymouth has unique wide streets and pedestrianised areas that promote traffic-free shopping, socialising and entertainment venues, open air cultural events and transport hubs.

These are advantageous features for the growth of more city centre homes. The new Armada Way development will be a great gathering place for people of all ages from the very youngest to the oldest.

Since the pandemic, many city centre streets have featured more and more food delivery e-bikes. This can be a benefit to businesses and consumers, but I cannot get my head around phoning up for a burger breakfast! I recently read that at the big city centre fast food outlet with the golden arches, 66% of its trade is generated by e-bike deliveries. Again, this is part of the evolution of retail and services, whether ‘you’re lovin it’ or not!

Several residents in Plymstock Dunstone and the rest of the city through their local councillors, have shared with me their concerns and worries about the conduct of some food delivery e-bike riders. Some become anxious when bikes appear from behind or speed around them, especially those who are elderly, have a sensory impairment or with young children. I have also received concerns from drivers who do not see the bikes clearly when they ride around on the city’s roads.

At the end of March, I will chair the council’s scrutiny management board who will discuss this burning issue. We will engage with key people who manage the city centre, the police, local city councillors, officers and representatives of the food outlets and delivery franchises. Our aim will be to identify the key problems, and to work towards clarity for providing rider education to ensure rider and pedestrian safety, monitoring of biker conduct and compliance of bike suitability and legality.

I hope to update you in the future on how this work is going.

If you have been affected by the conduct of some food delivery riders, please contact me as soon as possible on the email or phone number below, so I can represent your experiences.

Plymstock Radford is a great part of the city. But like every community we are impacted by issues of anti-social behaviour (ASB). Since being elected last year, I have built a close working relationship with our fantastic Plymstock neighbourhood policing team. This is key to tackling ASB across the ward.

Recently, I’ve been focussed on one type of ASB that I know frustrates both myself and residents – fly tipping. I have taken steps to crackdown on fly tipping at The Broadway and in other parts of the ward and this work continues.

I’m well aware of other ASB issues faced by residents. And whenever it’s raised with me, I try my best to support residents. During one of our recent street surgeries, one of the concerns residents raised with me was vehicular ASB, the blight of inconsiderate road users speeding and being noisy. This is an issue that far too many residents in Plymstock experience far too often. It is completely unacceptable .

But what can we do about inconsiderate road users? I know you might have heard this before, but it’s worth saying it again, report it. You can do this through Police 101 either by phone or online. Alternatively, you can contact me, and I will pass it on directly to the local police team.

If you have any video footage, particularly where it identifies the vehicle and driver/rider from CCTV or a ring doorbell or similar, even better. It goes without saying, don’t put yourself at risk to get video footage or confront inconsiderate road users.

The video footage will provide the police the evidence they need to issue a Section 59 warning. This is a warning issued for any vehicle being used in a manner which causes alarm, distress, and annoyance (e.g. street racing). If the owner continues the offending behaviour, the police can seize and impound the vehicle.

Together we can send boy racers a clear message, you are not welcome in Plymstock!

During the past month, the majority of people who contacted me asked for help regarding planning matters. I am not an expert on the subject, but common sense and probing questions were especially useful in delivering answers to their enquiries.

One of the most complex situations was raised by a resident in Sherford. I was troubled that on top of the council tax, they are paying an additional management fee for the maintenance of the area which seems mismatched to the council tax band for their property.

New development management companies appear to trap people with increases in management fees which residents have no control over, unlike the council tax which is scrutinised and subject to full council discussion and agreement. I will arrange to meet with the appropriate property management company to share residents’ concerns and update you on the situation in a future article.

At the last full council meeting in February, I was carefully listening to the make-up of the council tax during the coming financial year and how it will be spent among other budget income. As a council, we are raising the city council tax by 4.99% which includes 2% for adult social care and a Fire and Rescue and Police Services precept. This was necessary to ensure we can deliver our services this year.

Unfortunately, as a council, we have been obliged to take on the cost of £410,000 from our reserves to hold a referendum for a Democratically Elected Mayor (DEM). If people decide to vote to elect a DEM, it could cost Plymouth residents up to £1.5 million extra per year to fund the office of such a mayor with absolutely no benefits or extra powers for the running of the council.

That means less money to deliver essential services for the residents of Plymstock Dunstone and the wider Plymouth city community.

Residents should be glad to know that finance has been allocated to fund services important to you. New bus services linking Plymstock, Sherford and Plympton meaning a public transport link to The Park Crematorium.

Speeding issues and inconsiderate parking are having a detrimental impact on Plymstock residents. I have received several reports about speeding, particularly along Stanborough Road. There has been damage to cars, noise nuisance at night from cars and motor bikes and more recently, an accident where a car lost control.

We are extremely grateful to have the support of the neighbourhood police team. However, enforcement of traffic speed restrictions is only one piece of the puzzle to tackling this problem. Lasting change comes from education, community involvement and a shared commitment to road safety. It’s not just about catching those who break the law, it’s about creating safer neighbourhoods.

We are keen to set up a community speed watch programme and I am happy to be contacted if any residents are interested. The Plymstock Labour councillors are committed to engaging with residents, the police and the council to work towards promoting and achieving safer roads. Clearly, this is a work in progress, and we will endeavour to keep you updated.

Inconsiderate and, on some occasions, illegal parking continues to be problematic. Residents living in roads near the local schools are having access to their driveways impaired or blocked by inconsiderate parking. Parking too close to junctions inevitably blocks visibility for drivers emerging from side roads.

Parking on pavements restricts access for the most vulnerable pedestrians in our community including children, the elderly, the visually impaired, parents with prams and wheelchair users. In an attempt to keep the road clear and protecting their own vehicle, drivers are putting residents at risk by forcing them to walk on the road. I would like to politely remind road users to think before you park and consider the safety and needs of others.