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  • "
    Joe Hune wrote:
    The Bald Eagle wrote:
    119 posts and the keyboard warriors on here are still at it. Did we touch a nerve? Certain correspondents have made it entirely clear that they do not want the No To Mob to assist with safety and traffic flow in their town. That is their opinion and they are perfectly entitled to it. The members of the NTM are equally entitled to ignore their opinion (and believe me we will) and go about our lawful business of holding public servants and their employees/contractor s to account to us (the public they purport to serve) for their actions. I await the inevitable tirade of uninformed, illogical abuse that will undoubtedly follow, but to quote Lefty Cyclist from one of his posts above, if you don't like it, "Tough".
    Yeah you got the hint that your not wanted in Southend, but if anybody expected you to take any notice of that, they were very much mistaken.

    Come to Southend, if it keeps your sad little lives happy to ride around our roads everyday then do so.

    But if you think the Southend Council will buckle to this type of protest, then wake up and smell the coffee as it is never going to happen!

    Can you imagine if they buckle to a few boys on their bikes, they would be U-Turning on everything! The CCTV cars are here to stay and if there was ever a chance to get rid of them, you lot coming here has put a stop to that!!
    The only reason they're protesting is because Westminster council brought in parking charges for motorcycles. Until then they'd been able to park free.

    They're just children throwing their toys out of the pram because now they have to contribute just like every other driver."
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Masked bikers warn drivers about spy cars

8:40am Monday 18th June 2012 in News By Jasmin McDermott

Watching the CCTV car – Graeme Jones and Si Clark Watching the CCTV car – Graeme Jones and Si Clark

CAMPAIGNERS are donning vigilante-style masks and taking to the streets of Southend warning motorists who are in danger of being nabbed by the council’s spy cars.

The group, known as No To Mob, are following the controversial CCTV cars around the borough on motorbikes, stopping to tell drivers parked illegally to move on – or get a fine.

The six masked men form part of a protest about the way the cars are being used and the rules under which they operate.

Their leader is trader Bob Wells, 52, who has led similar protests in Westminster and Bexley, Kent.

Mr Wells, owner of Printer and Cartridge Solutions in Woodgrange Drive, Southend, started his campaign following fears the spy car was driving vital custom away from his business.

He claims the car travels along the road past the stretch of shops at least once a day looking for illegal parkers. And therefore is not fulfilling its purpose.

Steve Baker, from Enfield, a member of the group, said: “We are not stopping the cars from doing their job. In fact, we are encouraging and helping them.

“If drivers are not parking illegally, then they won’t get caught.

“We are simply helping the spy car fulfil what the Secretary of State said in 2008, which was to get 100 per cent compliance, with no penalty charges.

“We also observed the cars to make sure they were not committing any offences themselves when they were out.”

Mr Wells launched his petition calling for a review on the controversial cars in April.

It has so far attracted more than 2,000 signatures from fed-up traders and residents.

He hopes No To Mob’s presence has caught the attention of council officials.

Mr Wells, of The Drive, Chalkwell, who has set up action group SOSSpyCar, said: “Traffic offences in the town need to be policed responsibly, and at the moment they are not.

“Many of the parking issues we have can be dealt with by traffic wardens.

“I support the car covering schools and clamping down on dangerous parking, but it seems by and large they are not doing this.”

Andrew Lewis, director for enterprise, tourism and the environment, at Southend Council said: “I am extremely concerned.

“The two civil enforcement officers found their presence extremely intimidating.

“Unfortunately, there was nothing we could do to prevent them from taking this action as they weren’t breaking the law.”

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