Police add new A64 site near Heslington to mobile speed camera locations

Mobile safety camera routes week commencing 20 November 2013
speed camara van

 Below are the enforcement locations for North Yorkshire Police’s mobile safety cameras for week commencing Wednesday 20 November 2013.

The safety cameras are now more visible then ever before with each of the three vehicles bearing the same hi-vis livery as North Yorkshire Police’s marked vehicle fleet.
All safety camera locations are published on the force website along with an explanation of the various route types.
Members of the public can now view the results of the safety camera enforcement activity on the force website.

Up to date data for the previous week is uploaded every Tuesday which can be interrogated by route and date ranges. 

 The mobile safety cameras will be in operation at the following sites at various times over the coming week.

Cameras will not be in use all day, every day.  Due to operating constraints, our mobile safety camera locations may change without prior warning.

  •  • A64 eastbound Tadcaster, by-pass
  • • A64 westbound Tadcaster, by-pass
  • • A64 eastbound, Islington, Tadcaster
  • • A64 westbound, Street Houses, Bilborough
  • • A64 Westbound, Wharfe Bridge, Tadcaster
  • • B1228 Dunnington, Lodge Elvington
  • • Tadcaster Road, Dringhouses, York
  • • Strensall Road, Huntington, York
  • • Church Lane, Wheldrake
  • • Millfield Lane, Poppleton York
  • • Towthorpe Road, Haxby
  • • Greenshaw Drive, Haxby
  • • A64 eastbound, Heslington, York
  • • A64 westbound, Heslington, York

Click for full list

Public exhibitions set to unveil plans for former British Sugar site

British Sugar site

British Sugar site

British Sugar is inviting local residents to attend public exhibitions to discuss proposals for the redevelopment of the former British Sugar industrial site off Boroughbridge Road in York.

The events will take place on Thursday 28 November and Saturday 30 November and will provide residents with the opportunity to review the draft Masterplan options for the site and discuss the proposals with the project team.

City of York Council has consulted for a number of years on the future development of the site and has identified it in its Draft Local Plan for a residential-led development, which will deliver much-needed family homes.

However the Council’s Leadership is understood to be pressing for a large supermarket to be included in the development which could cause huge traffic pressures in the area while robbing the beleaguered Acomb shopping centre of vital footfall.

The exhibitions will be held at the former Manor School site, Low Poppleton Lane, York, YO26 6BB between 3pm and 7pm on Thursday 28 November and between 11am and 4pm on Saturday 30 November.

Site tours will also be offered to those attending the Saturday event.

Further information is available by calling 08448 425285. Following the exhibitions information will be uploaded to the website http://www.sugarredevelopmentyork.co.uk/.
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Lendal Bridge/Coppergate update published. Number fined tops 35,000!

Stand and deliver Labour revive traditional transport funding in York

Stand and deliver
Labour revive traditional transport funding in York

25,911 motorists have attracted penalty charge notices, for using Lendal Bridge, since ANPR cameras were switched on to enforce restrictions at the beginning of September.

On Coppergate, a total of 9122 drivers have now been penalised.

Together that means that 35,033 drivers have been told to cough up £60 each.

That is the equivalent of over £2 million in fines income.

Of course, the amount actually received by the Council will be less than half that figure as many will pay early to get a £30 discount, while others will successfully challenge the fine.

It is still a damming indictment of the adequacy of the signage used to advertise the restrictions.

Fines levied by week. Click to enlarge

Fines levied by week. Click to enlarge

The figures are admitted in the Councils latest update report on the effects of the new traffic restrictions.

The report is otherwise remarkable for what it hides rather than what it reveals.

There are no footfall (shopper) statistics included, accident and air quality figures are missing, only the effects of the closure on park and ride bus services are reported (journey times up in October) while the normal stage carriage services (which have been hit by increased traffic congestion in other parts of the City) are omitted.

No information on journey times for drivers is provided.

The Council only admits that traffic volumes on Foss Islands Road and Clifton Bridge are up on the same period last year.

The report, such as it is, can be read by clicking here.

York boundary blunders

Hopes that the final report, into the boundaries of wards used in local elections in York, might stimulate local democracy in the City have been dashed.

click for larger map

click for larger map

The Boundary Commission have confirmed most of their original proposals with the only significant change being the merging of Heslington Village with Fulford.

The University is added to the Hull Road Ward and given an additional Councillor.

The Westfield Ward boundaries remain as they are now.

It seems to us that, Fulford excepted, the Boundary Commission have ignored local views and given weight only to representations made by the Labour party.

The opportunity to create smaller wards has been missed meaning that the chance to re-establish links between the community and their elected representatives has been lost.

Press cutting can't name Councillor

It is only a few days since the Council admitted that most residents did not even know the names of their local Councillors.

The suggestions, that distinct communities like Foxwood should have a single identified representative, are ignored in the Commissions final report

The Boundary Commission – prompted by the vested interests of existing Councillors – have also declined to introduce annual elections (where a ¼ of the Council would submit themselves for re-election each year).

The advantage of annual accountability is that it acts as a brake on extreme policies (we doubt if Labour would have closed Lendal Bridge if they faced a ballot box verdict next May) and ensures that there are at least some experienced members in the Council chamber.

So 1/10 for the Boundary Commission.

Labour will be happy as the new boundaries may give them extra seats in the Hull Road and Clifton areas, but mostly it will be the Russell Brand style sceptics who will no doubt portray minimum change proposals like these as further evidence of a broken political system.

They may be right.

Adoption week thanks

adoption

Adoption chiefs are thanking everyone who came to their Adoption Information Event earlier this month, which formed part of the celebrations for National Adoption Week (4-10 November).

The information events, which are help jointly with North Yorkshire County Council and East Riding Council, provide an informal opportunity to anyone interested in adoption to find out more about what’s involved.

The next information session will be held at West Offices in York on Tuesday 10 December between 6.30 and 8.30pm. Please book in advance by calling 01904 553525 or 553508, or email adoptionandfostering@york.gov.uk

Nationally 4,000 children are waiting to find an adoptive family, but for one in four it is likely to remain only a dream.

And for every year a child waits their chances of being adopted reduce by 20 per cent.

City of York Council has historically approved around 12 new adoptive families each year, but is looking to increase this to at least 18 families in 2013/14 and 21 in 2014/15.