March 2021 update on the Stop the A38 Expansion campaign

We hope you are staying safe and well. We miss being able to hold meetings in person and hope to see you all again on the streets soon!

Call to action – can you sign the Bulldozer Pledge?

Stop the A38 Expansion Campaign Update

Extinction Rebellion Derby has been involved with the Stop the A38 Expansion Campaign and legal challenge.

The Crowd Justice page reached its initial funding target within 24 hours of being launched! It is now raising money to meet the expected full legal costs (likely to be between £20,000 and £30,000). Please donate if you are able, and share it with your contacts. Learn about how Crowd Justice works.

The court papers were filed by Richard Buxton Solicitors on the 19 February. There will then be around four to six weeks for a decision from a judge as to whether the case goes to court.

Check out these online sites for more information:

Sign the Open Letter to Stop Tree Felling

Please can you help by signing the open letter to Highways England?

It asks them not to cut down any trees or destroy any wildlife habitats for the A38 expansion until we know the outcome of a legal challenge against the road scheme.

A judicial review of Grant Shapps’ decision to approve this environmentally damaging road is underway in the courts, but despite this, Highways England appear to want to start work by chopping down trees and tearing out several hectares of wildlife habitat so that they can start construction of the road this summer.

This is crazy and irresponsible! What if all those beautiful trees are destroyed and all of that natural environment lost, only to find that the road scheme is cancelled?

Bulldozer Pledge

Please consider signing the bulldozer pledge.

NVDA training available on XR Midlands’ Facebook events page.

Rebel Radio Show About Roads

Listen to this Rebel Radio show with Becca and Chris from transport Action Network and Mya from XR Derby talk about the Government’s £27 billion Road Investment Strategy 2 and why expanding networks is bad for the climate and ecological emergency.

News Coverage on RIS2 (Road Investment Strategy 2)

We all know road building is a ridiculous and harmful waste of money during a climate and ecological emergency. It has been revealed that Grant Shapps and the Department of Transport knew this too but pushed ahead with RIS2 anyway.

Other legal challenges against UK roads

Transport Action Network’s challenge to make the Department for Transport update its outdated roads policy, the National Policy Statement for National Networks: ‘Stop the largest ever road-building programme’

Stonehenge Alliance’s challenge to stop the desecration of the Stonehenge landscape by major new road: ‘Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site’

The Future of Urban Transport

How can we solve road congestion, cut carbon emissions, keep our green spaces and trees, make our roads & streets safer and end toxic air pollution?

What alternatives are there to road network expansion?

There are plenty of other exciting, innovative, clean, environmentally friendly transport solutions! Check out these articles and a podcast about the future of urban transport.

The Welsh Government is opting for investment in other forms of transport over destructive road building: M4 congestion: Spend £800m on public transport, report says

XR Derby Weekly Meetings

Due to COVID we’ve had to scale back our activities as group, but we are still holding weekly meetings on Mondays at 8pm. If you would like to join email hello@rebellionderby.earth to request the Zoom meeting details.

XR Midlands and XR UK

Spring into Action – save some (tentative) dates for a family-friendly Midlands rebellion near you!

  • Sat 22nd May
  • Fri 28th May
  • Sat 29th May
  • Fri 4th June
  • Sat 5th June

For news on what Extinction Rebellion UK and other groups are up to visit: XR UK news.

In Other News

The climate and ecological crisis is worsening and urgent action is needed locally, nationally globally.

Sir David Attenborough warns UN that climate and ecological breakdown are greatest threats humanity has ever faced

Rising heat and humidity threatening to plunge much of the world’s population into potentially lethal conditions

The UK government would like to remove our right to protest: