My blood pressure has again been put under stress by the ridiculous traffic management scheme that is at present in operation on the dual carriageway section of the A1 from Dean Moor south to the Swarland-Guyzance cross roads.

Here we have nearly two and a half miles of cones. Just think how many that is! Some are double-banked, while we have roadworks going on close to the start and end of the stretch.

For all those cones it looks as though two middle sections are being taken out and barriers removed. The work is probably essential and I have no complaints with that.

But do villagers at Newton on the Moor and those who live in Hampeth and Swarland need to have to undergo long detours while the work goes on, especially when you consider that the work is hundreds of yards from each junction. Do thousands of motorists each day need to suffer a 50mph speed limit while the work goes on over such small sections? Surely not.

Former Prime Minister John Major set up a cone hot-line which motorists could call when they thought that cones were not required. That died. It was a great shame because I would imagine that the line would be red hot from this area alone if it still existed.

Drivers who travel the A1 daily say it is just pure red cone madness and bad planning. Can some of our councillors now intervene to sort this stupidity or do they just sit back and say, well the officials know what they are doing?
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MY reaction after reading a story in last week's Gazette was a simple one. I made poor Mrs C jump as I exclaimed loudly 'they must be joking'.

I refer to the Blyth Valley Labour Party, which has raised a petition to prevent Northumberland County Council, which now controls parking in the whole of the county, imposing charges on the former free parking district.

Now my understanding is that they have the backing of their local MP Ronnie Campbell and have so far gained 300 signatures on a petition. That is like asking turkeys to vote for Christmas. Would you sign a petition objecting to a car parking charge if it had always been free in the past? Of course you would.

But that is not the point. We are all one big happy family now under the control of the county council and all things must be equal, not some charged and others going free at the expense of the rural areas.

Alnwick, Morpeth, Berwick and Hexham all pay parking charges, and they are not cheap so why not the residents of Blyth Valley?

The proposals have still to be finalised but unless the Morpeth-based authority comes up with a scheme that treats all residents the same then I will be organising a petition to fight them.

The council is already heavily cash-strapped.