On Tue, 30 Nov 2004 07:31:55 +0000, "Clive D. W. Feather"
wrote:

In article , Roland
Perry writes
You don't think Brentwood, Chelmsford, Witham, Southend, Basildon and
Grays are in Essex ?!?!?

Southend isn't (any more than Peterborough is in Cambridgeshire): it's
in the County of Southend-of-Sea. As for Grays, I don't have a map to
hand, but didn't Tendring Hundred declare UDI?


Grays is still in Essex!

Thurrock Council is now a Unitary Authority, taking a bigger share of
the local taxation pie, & providing some services that used to be
provided by the ECC, but the Police & Fire Services are still provided
via County Hall.

As for Herr Anderson's coments re "Gormandy?", I'd reccomend that he
should not pre-judge a sizeable chunk of Essex's population by their
accents / dialects or by where they chose to live!

Since he obviously has no knowledge of local traffic patterns, I'd be
happy to state that Colchester to Grays / Thurrock is an hour's drive
at legal speeds on a "good" day.
The layout of the new road network for Ebbsfleet Station is,as yet
unfinished, but it seems that to get there from the QE2 bridge, one
would have to drive down the A2, eastbound.
This will clash with the traffic to / from the Bluewater Mall !

So, as this time, based on some personal commuting experience between
Colchester & Thurrock, + local knowledge re trips to / from Kent, I'd
allow 2 hours from door to door by car!

Since it's unlikely that many E*'s will actually call at Stratford
&/or Ebbsfleet, I suspect that most of us will continue to drive to
Ashford & park there.
The M20 is a much quieter & quicker road than the A2, with better
access to the M25, & Ashford is an easy hours drive from the Dartford
Crossing.

DC