Plan ahead for the Tour de Yorkshire

City of York Council is encouraging residents and visitors to plan ahead for Saturday 2 May when stage two of the inaugural Tour de Yorkshire will finish in York.

Stage two of the Tour de Yorkshire will see riders setting off from Selby, racing through the East Riding of Yorkshire before making their way to York. The peloton will enter York from the A166 before taking on two and half laps of a 20km finishing circuit, around the city from the Racecourse and out to Murton, with the finish expected to be between 3.30 and 4pm.

A professional women’s race will cover five laps of the same 20km finishing circuit in the morning, with the race starting at 11am at Knavesmire Road. This will give people another great chance to see world class cycling in York.

The fast-paced circuit will see the cyclists negotiate the city’s historic streets including the bar and cobbles of Micklegate and the beautiful bar walls along Paragon Street.

The circuit also makes a welcome return to Bishopthorpe Road to replicate scenes that were seen across the world during the Tour de France.
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Increase in visitor numbers in York City Centre

“Freedom of information” response reveals 24% more walked down Parliament Street in 2014 than in the previous year.

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The number of visitors to the York City centre is now comparable with pre recession levels.

The area seems to have recovered from the reduction seen during the summer and autumn of 2013 when the Lendal bridge closure resulted in adverse publicity for the City across a wide part of the UK and indeed Europe.

The recovery seems to have extended into 2015 with 24% more pedestrian movements logged in January 2015 compared to 2014, with 10% more recorded during February

A complete day by day footfall monitor for cameras in Parliament Street, Coney Street, Church Street, Micklegate and Stonegate can be downloaded by clicking here. The latter 4 camera sites have been operating for less than a year, making comparisons difficult

Some caution should be used when looking at the footfall numbers.

The cameras may have been relocated in the past while special events and market stall locations, can “channel” greater or lesser numbers of people into range of the cameras.

The data is not of course a measure of how much people are spending in the City centre.

Public services in York getting worse this year – official

Little attention has been given to a report to tomorrows Cabinet meeting which shows a marked decline in the quality of some public services in York

Graffiti taking longer to remove

Graffiti taking longer to remove

It is taking the Council between 2 and 3 days to clean graffiti now – almost double the time taken two years ago

The number of York residents on the housing waiting list has increase from 1344 to 1439 over recent months It is still low compared to historical levels (because many applicants were struck off the list last year by the Council)

Only 62% of tenants are satisfied now with the Council as a landlord. To a degree this reflects the lack of investment in the Council estates across the City (a LibDem regeneration plan was voted down last week by the Labour/Green coalition)

Customer satisfaction with the quality of streets and public places has slipped below 50% as has satisfaction with green spaces.

Only 48% think that the Council is tackling anti social behaviour well.

Fewer residents (12%) are now “volunteering”

The number of people aged over 65 admitted to residential and nursing care homes had risen to 767 (per 100k population) by the end of last year. Numbers are increasing again this year.

By December 27 residents were victims of delayed discharges from hospital. Of these 15 were down to York Council care failings.

Waste going to landfill increasing

Waste going to landfill increasing

The Council is failing its waste management targets. Consequently taxpayers will foot an increased £3.7million landfill tax bill.

Stage carriage bus use in the City is stable.  The Council refuses to publish monthly figures indicating the number of buses running on time (was 84% last year according to DoT figures)

Community Stadium – last minute bid for all party support

With the planning application for the new Community Stadium held up as highways issues are reviewed, the York Council will today decide to set up an all party monitoring group for the project.

Community Stadium Nov 2014

Such a group was in place until 2011, after which the newly elected Labour Council decided to take project decisions behind closed doors.

The result was a two year delay in moving things forward with the complication of adding Citywide  swimming and indoor sport management responsibilities into the contract.

One consequence was the closure of Waterworld and an emerging threat to the future of the Yearsley swimming pool.

The war between the Councils Labour Leadership and the Knights Rugby Club continues with both sides now engaged in a “mentoring” process.

A “call in” of the planning application by the Highways Agency is adding to the delays with even the most optimistic supporter now doubting whether the stadium could open as promised in July 2016.

The establishment of the all party group is a welcome step forward and should help to sustain the project over the “all out” Council elections, due on May 7th. The make up of the monitoring group would be:

  • 1 x Labour
  • 1 x Conservative Group (Councillor Steward)
  • 1 x Liberal Democrat Group (Councillor Ayre)
  • 1 x Green Group (Councillor Taylor)
  • 1 x Labour Independent
  • 1 x Independent
  • 1 place for a Ward Councillor (Councillor Orrell – Huntington & New Earswick)

From walking to jogging in 10 weeks.

Walkers who would like to speed up and start jogging are invited to join a new programme which transforms residents from striding out to jogging up to five kilometres after 10 weeks.

The Walk 2 Jog Programme, organised by City of York Council, starts on Tuesday 17 February at 6.30pm at Rowntree Park car park. The weekly sessions steadily increase in speed and distance, starting with a three kilometre walk which builds up to a five kilometre jog in week 10.

The fitness sessions are planned to be fun and sociable which participants really enjoy and feel the benefits of in terms of stamina, aerobic capacity and weight loss.

The course will be taken by Jonathan Nyman, qualifying as an England Athletics run leader. Jonathan first started jogging as a way of helping to control high blood sugar levels, which developed into setting up a social jogging group.

Jogging as an exercise is a great aerobic activity which can help weight loss and develop a healthy heart. While many people take up jogging to enter local races and raise money for charity, those who want to carry on will be given other options available, which includes joining other jogging and running groups held across York.

This Walk 2 Jog course is for adults and costs £10 for 10 weeks with each session lasting approximately 40 to 60 minutes. Participants are asked to bring a drink and wear trainers and comfortable clothes. For further information and to book contact Dean Sharp, Sports Participation Officer email dean.sharp@york.gov.uk or call 01904 553377.