The Autumn 2010 issue of INDEPENDENCE highlighted the work that the Association's Committee has been doing on a wide range of issues, varying from the inadequate tree planting planned for the area in front of the high steel wall retaining the M25 north of Junction 17 to support for the campaign for a new secondary school. Various articles mention the slowness of the country's bureaucracy, from the three years, and counting, that Hertfordshire County Council have already taken without solving the problem of the flooding in the western High Street to the 18 months that it has taken to get a Traffic Commissioner's decision on the Stockers Farm Road depot. (The conditions for use of the depot have been tightened by the Commissioner following lengthy correspondence with the Association, but not enough, and little heed was taken of our members in the local action group; the formal nature of the Association certainly helps.) Peter Waters reminded us about the sort of problems that Rickmansworth faced 100 years ago as the country came to terms with the motor car and showed that change is always a challenge for bureaucracy.

David Leach, who died suddenly in October, wrote an excellent article about the possible impact of changes to the planning rules and guidelines. The Association aims to follow up on this in 2011.
Russell Carpenter discussed the new Metropolitan Line trains, where one-third of the seats have gone but we now have air conditioning, and described the improvements to the pumping station at Juniper Hill.
Carolyn Venn has an excellent article outlining some of the issues affecting the campaign for a new secondary school, a campaign that enters a new phase now that TRDC's consultation period has closed.
With changes to the NHS coming thick and fast, Jasper Jepson outlines some of the issues that the Association will keep an eye on.

As Tony Berry has resigned from the committee after an incredible 33 years, we published an article thanking him and outlining some of the many things that he ahs done for the community in that time.

More details of many of these articles on the Current Issues pages.