Evening Chronicle

Turn Over a New Leaf and Help Save Your Planet ; Green Lifestyle Changes Can Make All the Difference

GIVING up smoking, cutting down on booze, losing weight. Most people have made a New Year's resolution at some point.

Reminder On Free Bus Travel

TRANSPORT officials have reminded pensioners and disabled passengers that a new Government-funded scheme giving them free bus travel starts in the spring. Nexus has unveiled its new-look Tyne and Wear CT Card which will be posted to all existing pass-holders in March, just before they can be used for the first time on April 1. The transport operator has reminded current pass-holders in Tyne and Wear that they do not need to apply for a new card, but any card which expires before the end of Ma...

Housing Work Sees Complaints Shoot Up ; Council Admits Availability of Tenant Homes Is a Problem

A MASSIVE housing modernisation programme involving around 30,000 properties in Newcastle has led to a big increase in council complaints. Officials have revealed that complaints against the city council have risen for the third year running. New figures reveal that the council received 1,624 formal complaints in 2006-07, compared with 1,306 the previous year, an increase of around 24%. Totals for the two previous years were 1,070 and 914. The figures do not include problems dealt with direct...

Tune Army Doing Their Bit for Trip

ADVENTURE is on the horizon for these talented buskers. Alex Jefferson, 15, from Gosforth, Newcastle, and Sophia Pearson, 14, from Sunderland, are raising funds for the trip of a lifetime to Central America.

Better Help for Abuse Victims

How to Recycle Old Cards

Drivers Derailed

A ROAD is to be closed for 10 days to allow essential railway track maintenance work. A section of the C405

Cash Crisis has Cut Off My Link to Outside World ; Woman Stuck in House After Project Axed

A DOUBLE amputee says she is a prisoner in her own home after a transport project was pulled due to a lack of funding. Mary Wilkinson lost one leg to gangrene and a few years later the other leg to diabetes.

Super Idea!

PLANS have been drawn up for a new supermarket in Northumberland.

Action Call On Drug Dealing

A NEWCASTLE councillor has called on officials to take tough action against drug dealers. Labour Coun Stephen Lambert criticised the Lib Dem Council for not being tough enough on drugs and drug-dealing in the city.

It's a New Year and I've Got a New Life ; Double Transplant Patient Looks Forward to Fresh Start

THE New Year really will be a new start for double transplant patient Christopher Richardson. For the first time, the 23-year-old has been able to celebrate the occasion properly and is looking to the future with fresh hope.

Uni's Top Choice

NORTHUMBRIA University has appointed its new vicec hancellor. Professor Andrew Wathey, 49, is currently senior vice-principal at Royal Holloway College, within the University of London.

Homes Scheme

THE go-ahead is being sought for a 40-house development on a former college site. Wansbeck Council has received an application for planning permission for the scheme.

Crime Squad

AN ELITE police squad is being set up to target callous gangs conning the vulnerable as bogus workmen. The squad will be based in Durham and work for 18 months to catch criminal doorstep callers.

Plea for Ex-Offenders

THE MINISTER for the North East Nick Brown has backed a new guide encouraging employers in the region to recruit ex-offenders. Research indicates that, at present, one in three adults in England and Wales holds a criminal record.

Metro, Train and Tunnel Fares All Rise ; New Year Brings Higher Travel Costs

TRAVELLERS in the North East are again facing the new year with a triple transport whammy. Fares on Metros, mainline trains and the Tyne Tunnel have all been increased for 2008.

Sergeant Tackled Yob

AN off-duty sergeant has been honoured for his quick action when faced with a knife-wielding youth. Sgt Tim Robson, Durham police's licensing officer, was cycling home from a Saturday shift when he was targeted by a trio of youths.

Getting Involved

CHILDREN have been getting involved with a pounds 2m housing development set to transform sheltered accommodation near their school. The development of new affordable homes for elderly residents is to be sited on disused land next to Battle Hill Primary School, Wallsend.

Trip for Teachers

THE search is on for teachers wanting to take their talents to Russia. Durham County Council's international office is arranging a visit for teachers and retired teachers to Kostroma.

Mp has a Whale

AN MP has adopted a whale - to show his opposition to the Japanese whaling industry. Blyth Valley MP Ronnie Campbell accepted an invitation from the International Fund for Animal Welfare to adopt a humpback whale called My Auntie.