06/08/2013 BBC Oxford News


06/08/2013

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from Oxford. In tonight's programme: Did eating while driving cause a

:00:09.:00:12.

motorist to knock down and kill a cyclist? Paul Brown denies causing

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death by dangerous driving, but lawyers claim he was distracted at

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the wheel. Also tonight, the pressures of

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public transport when you're blind or partially sighted. The campaign

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for talking buses to run in our region.

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And almost 200 years of tradition is on the brink of being scrapped - as

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:00:43.:00:48.

one of the last men only clubs votes to allow women.

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Good evening. A man has denied he was driving dangerously when he

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killed an off-duty firefighter who was cycling along a country road.

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Oxford Crown Court has been told that Paul Brown was distracted by

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eating a sandwich when he knocked Joseph Wilkins off his bike on a

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rural road near Oxford in May last year. Angela Walker is at the Crown

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Court. Angela, what has the court heard today? We heard that

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firefighter Joe Wilkinson was cycling down a country lane when he

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was hit from behind by a card driven by Paul Brown. He was thrown into a

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ditch and sustained fatal injuries. The court heard from one of the

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first police officers on the scene? PC Richard Watts was the first

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uniformed officer on the scene. He said the that the defendant was

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shaken and traumatised. And he said that through the window of the car

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he could see a half eaten sandwich and sandwich wrapper on the seat of

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the car. The defendant said to him that it was hazy and he just did not

:02:06.:02:16.
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see him. So what did Paul Brown say when he was questioned by police?

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Well he said that he had a sandwich in one hand and the steering wheel

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in another. But he said he had done it many times before and did not

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find it to be a distraction. He says he is denying the count of dangerous

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driving. The case continues at Oxford Crown Court.

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Oxford's only lap dancing club has been given permission to go to the

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court of appeal to appeal against a High Court decision not to renew its

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licence. The City Council refused The Lodge's application last year

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and that was upheld by the High Court. It had been denied a licence

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to operate next to St Ebbes church in 2011 and had moved to Oxpens

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Road. Now the owner will take his case to the Court of Appeal. Figures

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obtained by the BBC show that reported hate crimes in Oxfordshire

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have fallen by nearly 20% over the last year. The data from Thames

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Valley Police shows that between July 2012 and June 2013 there were

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264 crimes recorded against someone because of their race, religion,

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sexual orientation or disability. That's compared to 327 in the

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previous 12 months. People living near a busy main road on the edge of

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Swindon are hoping for a quieter life, with a fence that will cut the

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noise - and generate power. The barrier would be fitted with solar

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panels. A similar idea was put forward last year by residents in

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Oxfordshire who are campaigning for a solar-panelled sound barrier on

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the M40. Now businesses are being asked to help foot the bill for one

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on the A419. Scott Ellis has this report.

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The faster you go the Laudrup the noise and with lorries you can add

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the bracket of the diesel engine. To the east of Swindon you will know

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all about that. Sitting out sometimes in the back garden on a

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pleasant sunny day when it is no breeze, it is really loud. Sometimes

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we wake up during the night. In the early morning when they are all

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going to work. The current sound barrier is barely more than eight

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fence and has gaps in it. The Highways Agency agrees that the area

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needs an upgrade but roadside soundproofing costs up to �1 million

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per mile to build and maintain. Swindon borough council says that

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going solar could cut costs. solar sound barrier will comprise

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solar panels which generate electricity which we can then sell

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to local businesses. And we have a number of those in Swindon. If we

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can get them on board and raised the money necessary to build and they

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fought the maintenance of the barrier itself, it will work.

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other countries in Europe to have solar powered sound barriers. And

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the project does have the backing of the Highways Agency. In Swindon a

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business case is being put together. The town once solar powered

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soundproofing here in 2 years' time. Blind and partially-sighted people

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in Oxfordshire are urging bus companies to install talking buses.

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Every day 100 people in the UK start to lose their sight, and it's

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estimated that figure will double by 2050. Oxford Bus Company is training

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its drivers to be more aware of passengers with poor sight, but it

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could be a while before all its buses are fitted with spoken

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information. People who are blind or partially

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sighted are not allowed to drive so many use the buses. The problem is

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they often do not know which stopped to get off of which bus to get on.

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Paul has a progressive eye condition which has got much worse in the last

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few years. Because he has tunnel vision and is completely blind at

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night, he relies on buses to get around. He wants Oxford's buses to

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be talking buses. Whether in the daylight or especially in the dark,

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knowing what stop you want to get our fact, many times I have missed

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the correct stop. It is simply voice recognition and I think it is

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essential. All buses in London, more than 8,000 of them, have "next stop"

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announcements. In Oxford talking buses are being trialled on the

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park-and-ride service to help tourists. If successful they could

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be rolled out across the city. Oxford Bus Company does give

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disability awareness training to its drivers and other bus operators. Guy

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is partially sighted and Steve has been driving buses for more than 20

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years. What's it like when they swap places? There is a lot going on and

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they still have to be aware of the passengers on board especially the

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party decided once. I will be looking out for it a lot more.

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this month the National Institute of Blind People will ask the government

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to make training mandatory for all drivers.

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Smart phones, laptops and tablets are all bringing entertainment where

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people want it, whether that's on the street or in the home. But one

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cafe in Oxford is aiming to get us back to board games - sitting round

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a table, sharing the same experience. We've been out asking

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people about their favourite board games. We do play Monopoly a great

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deal and we know who cheats! I do like to play competitive games with

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my friends. Everybody wants to win. It is usually friendly but it was

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different when I was younger with all my brothers and sisters! Jeremy

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Stern has been to the cafe, Thirsty Meeples, where there are 1,500

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different games to choose from. If you like games you will not get

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bored here. There are hundreds to choose from at this new cafe in

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Oxford. I am just learning how to play this game. You are in a dungeon

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and random stuff happens to do with monsters. This is a simple tile

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game. I scored points by finishing a row. This is quite similar to chest

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but a bit more fun and fast paced. Five is a new game but there are are

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also classic. The owner quit his job as a social worker to set up in a

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macro. It has taken nine months to build up a collection which he

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believes can rival any computer console for entertainment value.

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Board games are going through a renaissance. There are around 300

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coming out every year now. We are trying to promote them so people can

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see which ones are good. For those who find instructions tedious there

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are games or was on hand to explain the rules. Some play for fun but for

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others it is all about the end result. The key to being good at

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winning, what everyone else is trying to grab, you find a different

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