Local News

Car use is around 30% lower on weekdays during lockdown 2.0, according to new data released by the Department for Transport.

Weekend road use is also down sharply, a 40% drop since the tighter restrictions came into effect.

By contrast, average car use plummeted 65% during the first lockdown, while April’s Easter weekend registered the lowest level of non-weekday car traffic, coming in at 75% lower than usual.

Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) traffic is the only vehicle group running above its pre-pandemic level since the 1stSeptember – showing a continuous flow of vital...

People in Exeter may soon be able to recycle their plastic and aluminium coffee pods from home thanks to a new initiative from the local authority.

Exeter City Council looks set to become one of the first councils in the country to allow residents to recycle the pods as part of its kerbside recycling collections.

Working with Podback, a not-for profit organisation, the Council is set to encourage householders to collect their plastic and aluminium coffee pods and then put them out for recycling collections in a separate bag to the green bin.

The pods will then...

South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) is reminding the public to respect its people when calling 999 for an ambulance this winter. Figures from the Trust indicate abuse against its 999 call handlers has more than doubled since the beginning of the full UK lockdown in March. Control room staff reported 77 verbal abuse incidents from callers between 23 March and 23 October, representing a 133% increase on the 33 incidents reported during the same time period in 2019. Ambulance staff reported a total of 289 verbal abuse incidents and 178 physical assaults during the...

Salmonpool Swingbridge - which crosses the Exeter Ship Canal - is set to close for much of next Wednesday (25 November), to allow maintenance to be carried out.

The bridge, which connects Clapperbrook Lane to the Riverside Valley Park car park will be closed to all vehicles, cycles and pedestrians between 8am and around 2pm whilst an inspection on the underside of the bridge and routine maintenance on the deck takes place.

Diversions are in place for pedestrians and cyclists and the bridge will reopen as soon as the work is completed. The City Council apologises for an...