Wetherby Road footpaths works from 2nd March

Wetherby Road footpath being reconstructed, click to enlarge

The City of York Council will start work week commencing 2nd March 2015 to reconstruct the footway shown on the plan left.

This scheme is programmed to take 5 weeks, weather permitting.

The work consists of fully excavating the footway and reconstructing from the ground up in tarmac, new pin kerbs are to be installed to the rear of the footway and selected road kerbs are to be replaced.

The Contractor carrying out the work will be City of York Council’s Highways department who are responsible for safety and for providing access while the work is ongoing.

The contractor will be working between 9:00am and 4:00pm Monday to Thursday, and 9:00am to 12:30pm on Fridays.

Residents have been offered a discounted extension or new vehicle crossing if constructed as part of this scheme. Anyone wishing to take advantage of this offer should telephone 01904 553130 before construction commences.

Existing vehicle crossing are to be reconstructed to current dimensions.

Bollards

Nearby, the we have reported the damaged illuminated bollard on the approach to the roundabout as requiring attention.

It is one of several bollards which should be illuminated as an aid to road safety,

Unlit bollard posed safety risk at night

Unlit bollard poses safety risk at night

but which have been faulty for several weeks.

Missing 20 mph sign on Briar Avenue. Other signs requiring attention are ignored by Council (Click to enlarge)

We think this sort of work should have a higher priority for the Council than putting up unnecessary 20 mph signs at the entrance to short cul de sacs.

The ones on Briar Avenue (right) have already been vandalised.

£11.9 million road resurfacing boost for York

The government has stepped in to give York an additional £2 million a year to tackle the road maintenance backlog.

Details of the announcement can be found by clicking here

The York Council gained notoriety in 2012 by halving the amount that it invested in repairing local footpaths and roads.

They continued the policy into 2013 with a large backlog of repairs developing. Investment only returned to 2011 levels this year.

The York Council announced its provisional resurfacing programme for 2015 a couple of weeks ago. The government announcement means that this list should now more than double in size.

York Council plans to spend £250,000 on “Tour de Yorkshire” cycling event as

More cuts to local environment planned

It looks like Labour Councillors want to spend another £1/4 million on a 3 day cycling event next May. One of the stages of the new “Tour de Yorkshire” will finish in York with several local sprint races planned.

Taxpayers will be expected to pick up the bill, from the commercial rights owners, for a whopping £100,000 “hosting fee” for the event,.

A report which is being considered tomorrow, by the Councils Cabinet, shows no sponsorship or admittance fees aimed at offsetting the bills.

A decision will apparently be made before the Inquiry into the disastrous Grand Departy flop is completed.

Organisers were forced to admit a couple of months ago that the Huntington Stadium event – staged separately from the Tour de France start – had lost over £186,000. An inquiry into the event was subsequently ordered by the Council’s scrutiny committee.

More Cuts

The same Council Cabinet agenda talks of major cuts to basic service standards.

Road surfaces in Queenswood Grove breaking up

Road surfaces in Queenswood Grove already breaking up

£1.3 million a year will be cut from social care budgets.

As well as the much publicised proposals to charge for green bin emptying and move to 4 weekly residual waste collections, Labour are now admitting that more cuts are planned to open space maintenance.

Volunteers will apparently be expected to maintain bowling greens, tennis courts, flower beds and undertake rose planting. The report says that the “replacement of bedding plants with ornamental grass at 18 sites could potentially save 1,519 hours of labour”.

Ominously the report talks of York’s roads and footpaths being “better than average” suggesting that further cuts in maintenance standards are planned.

Many residents will view with incredulity any proposals which would allow a further deterioration in the standard of highways surfaces.

Lethal potholes being ignored by York Council

Ever deepening potholes on the roundabout at the junction of Cornlands Road and Gale lane are causing a major accident risk for cyclists

So far the Council has ignored requests – stretching back to 2012 – for the holes to be made safe.

The Coalition government has recently made an additional £300,000 available to deal with problems potholes like these.

Former Westfield Councillor Andrew Waller has now written to the head of Highways Maintenance at the Council asking for action.

Similar problems with disintegrating speed cushions/tables have also been raised.

NB. The Council earlier in the week agreed to the general introduction of rubber speed cushions.

These have been tested over the last year or so at various locations in the City including part of Askham Lane.

The design is controversial but the decision was taken behind closed doors with no new driver consultation.

A copy of the report can be read by clicking here

Road repairs petition started in York

Damaged road hump

Residents have started a petition aimed at increasing the amount that the York Council invests in resurfacing roads and footpaths.

Speed humps and road surfaces in Hamilton Drive, Middleton/Stuart Road, Windsor Garth, and Ascot Way are crumbling into disrepair.

Residents say that they are a particular danger for cyclists although some car drivers have also started to complain about damage to tyres.

In addition many verges have been destroyed by vehicles during the extended period of wet weather. Things have got worse since the Council abandoned its programme of providing lay-bys and verge crossovers through Ward Committees.

Damaged verge

Money is available to pay for repairs as the Council is getting around £2 million a year in “new homes bonus” income from developments like the one starting on the nearby Our Lady’s school site.

It is also sitting on £1.3 million in fines income raised through camera enforcement of the Lendal Bridge/Coppergate restrictions. This money must, by law, be spent on “transport”.

Residents say the funds should be invested in highways repairs.

The Council will decide on Thursday how much of its budget to allocate to highways repairs.

The budget allocation had been nearly halved during 2013 compared to the amount being spent in 2011.

It was reported yesterday that the number of claims against the Council, for damage caused to vehicles during 2013, had increased compared to the previous year.

Vehicle damage claims up 67% in York

Call for Lendal Bridge fine income to be used to repair roads

The number of claims for compensation following damage to vehicles caused by poorly maintained roads in York dramatically increased last year.

Damaged speed humps. Already dangerous for cyclists.

The change followed a decision by the Labour controlled Council to reduce expenditure on highways maintenance by over £2 million.

The number of claims received, for incidents over recent years, has been

2011 – 75
2012 – 52
2013 – 87

There are now calls for the Council to agree, at its budget meeting next week, to increase the amount it spends on maintenance back to the £5.5 million figure which was being invested each year by the previous, LibDem controlled authority.

Pressure is also growing for the £1.3 million – taken in fines from motorists on Lendal Bridge and in Coppergate – to be used to address the backlog in resurfacing works.

Highways maintenance cuts for York revealed.

The Council has revealed how it plans to spend £2.6 million on highways and footpath resurfacing over the next financial year.

The provisional expenditure is down on the £3.4 million being invested during the current year.

That in turn was well down on the budget agreed by the last Liberal Democrat administration which held power until 2011 and which regularly invested over £5 million a year in the highways network.

Carriageway surfaces are now breaking up and the repairs backlog is growing.

In the Westfield ward footpaths in parts of three streets are due to receive attention next year. Roads affected are Cornlands Road, Wetherby Road, and Green Lane. However there are no plans to resurface any roads (carriageways) in the area.

A full list of streets where repairs are planned can be downloaded by clicking here

A final Council highways budget for next year will be announced in March.

The decision, on which roads to resurface, was taken in another “behind closed doors” meeting. There was no consultation with residents on the options.

York road repairs backlog hits £32.7 million

: Worn highays surface Hamilton Drive West

Pothole Windsor Garth

In response to a Freedom of information request , the York Council has admitted that it would cost £32.7 million to address the backlog on highways repairs.

The figure includes all road and footway refurbishment works with associated drainage and road signs and markings.

Meanwhile more and more problems with potholes are expected as ice further damages poor road surfaces during the winter months.

Potholes little Green Lane

Cornlands Road drains blockeed

Residents survey cites poor highway maintenance as York’s biggest public service problem.

York residents survey results click to enlarge

A survey completed by over 400 residents living in the west of York has revealed that highways and footpath maintenance are now the biggest cause for complaint.

73% thought that road and footpath maintenance had got worse in the City over the last 2 years.

The service was followed closely by ice clearance which 69% thought had got worse.

This is bad news for the Labour Council as the response come before the latest set of cuts to winter maintenance are implemented.

Parking provision was criticised by 65% with the large increases in parking charges introduced by the Labour Council likely to be the main influencing factor.

More than 50% of respondents also thought that litter, control of dogs, refuse collection and weed removal had got worse.

Only crime prevention fared relatively well, with 66% saying that the quality of the service was unchanged

The survey results will add pressure on the Council to support additional investment in street level public services at its meeting on Thursday.

Street level public service standards – plea to York Council next Thursday.

The York Council at a meeting next week will be asked to jettison its prestige expenditure plans and return to a more sensible economic policy.

Weeds need strimming at end of Ridgeway

A motion being put forward by the Liberal Democrats condemns deteriorating roads, footpaths and increasing litter as well as plans to reduce de icing services in winter.

It says that Labour’s decision to scrap the “York Pride” maintenance programmes means that many areas are now strewn with weeds and detritus.

Carriageway failed in Vesper Drive

Recent rain highlighted the impact that Labours decision to end the routine cleaning of gullies (road drains) is already having.

Meanwhile a rather disingenuous motion from Labour Cllr Burton, seeks to justify the bill for York staging the start of just one Tour de France stage.

The cost to taxpayers is already in excess of £1.5 million and rising.

The Labour backed motion says that any income to the Council from the event should be allocate to improve basic service standards.

It fails however to say that the income from a few hot dog stands is unlikely to make much difference.

The cost of the repairs back log on the City’s roads and footpaths alone now stands at over £20 million.

The Liberal Democrat motion reads
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