Latest news with #traveller
BBC News
2 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Plans approved to prevent unauthorised camps in Teignbridge
A council is to spend more than £70,000 on a range of measures to try to stop unauthorised Gypsy and traveller District Council said it had to clean up sites and repair damage following the unauthorised use of council-owned land, with eight cases requiring legal action in 2024.A report discussed on Tuesday proposed installing boulders, barriers and a new fence at six parks across the district. The council approved all the plans to make access more difficult for unauthorised council said there was no transit provision for Gypsy and traveller groups at the moment in Devon and it would work with other local authorities to identify possible sites. The report which was considered by the council's executive committee said unauthorised encampments created "significant demands" on resources through "the requirement to clean the site and surrounding areas, repair any damage caused and deal with complaints from residents and businesses that have been impacted".The plans include a new rail with steel posts at Osborne Park, boulders at access points to Sandringham Park and Bakers Park, lockable bollards at Courtenay Park and Forde Park and a barrier at Dawlish Countryside council said there were "no real alternatives" other than "to continue to reactively manage the unauthorised occupation of the parks and accept the associated costs, complaints and impacts on local residents and businesses".However, the council also acknowledged the risk that "the measures proposed will not guarantee a stop to further unauthorised encampments at these sites" and that encampments may move to other, more accessible, council-owned land.|About 20 members of the public attended the executive meeting which heard there had been an unprecedented number of encampments this year.
Yahoo
19-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
A14 lanes reopen after crash and oil spill
A section of the westbound A14 in Suffolk was closed for several hours following an earlier crash. National Highways said two lanes of the three-lane section between junction 39 for Kentford and junction 27 for west Newmarket were shut at about 12:20 BST on Saturday. All the lanes have since reopened, it added. It said a specialist team was called to clear an oil spill that occurred during the collision. A road sign was also damaged. A traveller caught up in the congestion believed a car had smashed into the central reservation and spun across the road. At its peak there had been delays of about 30 minutes on the approach and about four miles of congestion, National Highways added. Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. Related internet links National Highways
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Yahoo
Caravan camper's $600 mistake prompts simple Starlink warning to Aussie travellers
With more and more Australians taking life and work on the road, it's easy to make a simple mistake when moving between locations. One Aussie traveller has learned that lesson the hard way. Like countless others, he relies on Starlink for high-speed internet access while in remote campgrounds around the country. The service provides blanket coverage via low-Earth orbit satellites which beam down to a customer's small receiver dish. As such, those with caravans and motorhomes often attach the dish to their vehicle or fix it to a pole on the van to perch it above any pesky trees which might obstruct the signal. It sounds obvious, but the only catch is you have to remember to pack it away before heading to your next spot. "A bit of a long shot, but if anybody is at Cleaverville Campground WA and has found a Starlink mini, can they let us know and if it's salvageable," the traveller wrote last week after accidentally driving off with the dish still sticking off their van. Seeking help, he posted in a Facebook group of dedicated 'grey nomads' (a moniker proudly adopted by retired Aussies who caravan around the country), asking if anyone still in the area could track it down. While one fellow traveller retraced his tracks out of the WA campground, they were unable to locate the dish, which cost $600 in Australia. The camper, who wished to remain anonymous, told Yahoo he had "no luck" tracking it down and has reached out to Starlink for help. He had been driving for some time with it attached to the van before realising, he explained. With portable Starlink dishes increasingly popping up in campgrounds around the country and the smaller 'Mini' version launching in Australia last year, many simply responded to his call for help with the tricks they use to make sure they remember to collect their dish, such as leaving a sign on the steering wheel until it's packed away. Aussie couple Dan and Amanda were among the very first adopters of Starlink, even before the service was activated in much of the country. "We strongly believe in not mounting it and just using it on its stand in the best position," Amanda told Yahoo News this week. The couple spent more than two years moving around Australia in their caravan and run an online business while on the road, and are now travelling throughout Europe, where they still rely on the Starlink service for all their connectivity needs. "We did in Australia occasionally put it on the top of a mast to elevate it, which was mounted to the rear bar of our caravan, but that is a big pole, so hard to forget," she joked. "[Currently], we have it on our cab parcel shelf and it occasionally gets put up through the roof hatch onto the roof." The 'incredible' device taking over campsites, caravans and 4WDs Huge change for mobile users as new Space X teams up with Telstra 'Do what he wants': Australia warned on Elon Musk Amanda said they've heard of mishaps happening with Starlink dishes along their travels, and nearly suffered a similar fate recently. "We have definitely heard of others driving over them on the ground when moving vehicles around in caravan parks or free camps," she said. "We did, however, forget our dishy ('dishy' is the official name the company gives them) once when we were in Norway last year. We put it on the roof... and it was snowing so all the hatches and windows were closed. We drove off about 20 metres from our parking spot and then suddenly remembered it, thankfully. We stopped and grabbed it down, changed our routine to have Dan do a dishy check on every move." She suggests users intentionally leave the power cord in a highly visible place so it's not missed when packing up, and have one camper as the dedicated person to remember the dish. Starlink, owned by Elon Musk's SpaceX, is a private company and doesn't disclose detailed numbers about its business, but has previously said it has about 200,000 customers, a vast majority of whom would have the dish attached to their house for residential service, as opposed to the portable, roaming plan. A Facebook group, Starlink Users Australia, now has nearly 140,000 members, while YouTube is flooded with caravan and camping influencers offering advice on everything from how to mount it to the best power equipment to support it. It has become increasingly vital for those in regional Australia as it outperforms the NBN offering when it comes to speed and performance, as well as for nomadic Australians who have little alternative for a reliable internet connection. However, that is slated to change soon with Amazon launching its first satellites this year for a planned rival service. Another launch this week is set to take Amazon's 'Project Kuiper' to a total of 78 satellites in orbit (Starlink reportedly has about 8,000 satellites in its network). While Australia is said to be a priority market when it does begin offering the service, it remains to be seen when that becomes a viable alternative for Australian customers. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
SBS Australia
09-07-2025
- SBS Australia
Tomoya Midori Hitchhiking from Cairns to Melbourne over the course of one month
Tomoya Midori, a tuk-tuk traveller, stopped by SBS Sydney Studio Source: SBS / SBS LISTEN TO SBS Japanese 09/07/2025 14:18 Japanese Listen to SBS Japanese Audio on Tue, Thu and Fri from 1pm on SBS 3. Replays from 10pm on Tue, Thu and Sat on SBS1. Listen to past stories from our podcast. Download the free SBS Audio App and don't forget to visit SBS Japanese Facebook and Instagram page!
BBC News
27-06-2025
- BBC News
Wiltshire traveller site approved after rejection overturned
A four-pitch traveller site can be established after a refusal of planning permission was applicant, John Lee, applied for permission to provide accommodation for a single family, compromising a mobile home, a touring caravan and a day room with a bathroom, kitchen and dining space for four site in Grittenham, near Brinkworth in Wiltshire, originally received 37 objections, as some were concerned it "failed to integrate into its surroundings" due to its distance from local services.A planning inspector granted Mr Lee's appeal for the site earlier this month and awarded costs. Wiltshire Council launched a consultation in 2024 to find 128 new pitches and seven new sites for gypsies and travellers in the county by Lee's plans, originally submitted in August 2024, sought to redevelop land at Charlie's Place off Sodom Lane, near the M4. He applied to establish the pitches and a commercial barn measuring 20ft (6m) by 60ft (18m), the Local Democracy Reporting Service council's officers recommended granting the planning application, but councillors turned it down. As well as concerns about its distance from schools and healthcare providers, objections were made on highways and flood risk grounds, the size of the development and the use of hard standing in a rural Wildlife Trust, Dauntsey Parish Council, Grittenham and Brinkworth Parish Council and Tockenham Parish Council were among those objecting to the plans.
