Coronavirus York updates; 3rd June 2020

Deaths and cases

There were no additional hospital coronavirus deaths reported today (Wednesday). That is the third successive day without any additional deaths.

Two more cases of coronavirus were confirmed in York yesterday (Tuesday). The total now stands at 459 – an infection rate of 218.7 cases per 100,000 people.

York Council to “evolve beyond Coronavirus response”

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The York Council has issued the following (largely impenetrable) statement

“Following the challenges posed by the Coronavirus pandemic, City of York Council has developed plans to set out how the organisation will adapt and evolve moving forward.

As part of the Council’s short-term recovery plan, the ‘corporate’ recovery of the council will see the continued reinstatement of services that have been affected by the pandemic. Some reinstated services are likely to include some changes, in order to allow for social distancing and ensure the safety of residents and council staff.

In addition to the reinstatement of services, the corporate recovery plan will detail how the council will continue to work with partners to lobby the Government for additional funding, respond to the challenges posed by the pandemic, and facilitate further investment in the city.  

The council’s staff are its best asset in making this wide scale change happen, and to ensure staff are supported during this time, there will be an organisational development plan to support staff in new or amended operating models.  This includes utilising more agile and flexible working arrangements, with the right technology to enable staff to do so.

Leader of City of York Council, Cllr Keith Aspden, said:

“The coronavirus pandemic has significantly affected how the council delivers services to residents and businesses.  However, we are now in a position to look forward and consider how we can best evolve to continue providing crucial services to our communities, whilst ensuring the safety of residents and staff.”

“Of course, council staff will be key in making these changes happen and that is why we are working to deliver an organisational development plan to support them in these new, agile ways of working.”

“With the considerable funding challenges posed by the crisis, we will also look to maximise our influence to secure future investment in our city.  The last few months have demonstrated how crucial local services have been to support residents during these difficult times, and the Government must recognise more funding is needed for Councils to continue providing this support.”

“Moving forward, our recovery plan will continue to prioritise resident involvement in our democratic process and we are currently developing our methods for further remote meetings.”

To help residents and businesses stay in touch with the latest developments, the council has developed regular newsletters. You can sign up at https://www.york.gov.uk/form/EmailUpdates“

Missed bin emptying – latest from City of York Council

The Council has published its Tuesday update on missed bin emptying and recycling collections.

It reveals failings across all types of waste collection and neighbourhoods. It is no longer promising to empty bins on the next day, but is asking residnts to continue to leave their bins out.

Although COVID social distancing requirements have influenced recycling collection performance the Council blames “capacity issues” for most of the delays.

As the first collection of garden waste has been completed, the expectation was that the second lift would have been smaller. However, it maybe that residents, who stored green waste in line with Council instructions during the lock-down period, are now filling up the bins again.

It is impossible to judge whether volume is an issue unless the Council starts to publish again the tonnage of waste – by category – that it is dealing with each week.

The Councils management must provide more information on waste management including the level of demand for booking spaces at the household waste sites and the level of use of the bulky waste removal service.

Waste service reliability was already problematic before the Coronavirus crisis hit, with an unprecedented level of failed collections during the later part of 2019.

Residents deserve to know when they can expect a reliable service to be restored?

Green bin emptying and recycling collection backlog growing

The Council has not updated their web site to say how collections went today (Tuesday). However there are large numbers of full green bins still on the streets in the Foxwood area at least.

Last nights report from the Council suggests that it is still pushing a bow wave of un-emptied green bins and recycling boxes forward from one day to the next.

This is Mondays progress report from the Council.

Latest waste service update Monday 25 May

All scheduled household waste collections have been made.

We were unable to collect recycling waste from Copmanthorpe, Acaster Malbis, Woodthorpe and Foxwood as a result of restrictions on operations due to coronavirus.

We were able to return for all outstanding recycling waste, except for waste from Haxby, Rawcliffe and Clifton.

We’ll attempt to collect this recycling on Tuesday 2 June. Please present your containers for collection by 7.00am.

We’ve been unable to collect garden waste from a number of properties in the following areas due to capacity issues:

  • Acaster Malbis
  • Copmanthorpe
  • Wheldrake
  • Deighton
  • Dringhouses
  • Woodthorpe

We were able to return for all outstanding garden waste, except for waste from Clifton Moor and Clifton.

We will attempt to collect missed garden waste on Tuesday 2 June, but may not be able to revisit until later in the week. Please leave greens bin out and we’ll get to you as soon as we can.

Coronavirus York Updates; 2nd June 2020

No more deaths

No more coronavirus hospital deaths have been reported this week. The total across the York and Scarborough hospitals remains at 210.

Safeguarding support for children updated and improved

Another step to further improve support for children and young people across the City of York has been taken.

Over 600 professionals from City of York Council, North Yorkshire Police, the NHS Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and local health organisations have helped update guidance which extends the city’s coordinated approach to safeguarding.

This threshold document clearly sets out for all agencies consistent safeguarding assessment levels, at what point early help or intervention for a child or its family is needed, and the level or intensity of that help or intervention.

Published by City of York Safeguarding Children Partnership, the guidance builds on cross-city work already underway by York’s multi-agency safeguarding hub (MASH) which was set up in July 2019.

Reporting concerns about the neglect or abuse of a child is now done through the MASH and the updated contact details are:

(more…)

First Bus announces app update to live-track bus capacity

Pleased to see that First buses have been able to take up the suggestion that we made a couple of weeks ago that the available capacity of buses should be via a smartphone App. Hopefully the same information will also be displayed on street screens before very long.

First says, “This week we will be launching an update to our mobile app that will enable customers across the UK to live track not only the location of their next bus but also its available capacity, as we continue to develop ways to help customers social distance on board our fleet.

First Bus will be the first major bus operator to roll out live capacity tracking. This reduces uncertainty for customers and allows them to make informed decisions about their essential journeys. Going live this week, the app update will show customers a bus icon on a map depicting the live location and available capacity of each vehicle in the vicinity. This new functionality will provide customers with the information they need as the bus approaches.

The innovation has been made possible by First Bus’s new passenger counting functionality, announced at the end of May. Data from this system feeds directly to the First Bus app in real time. This app update coincides with First Bus doubling the number of buses operating across England from Monday 1 June, with support from UK Government. First Bus expects to be able to increase service levels across its networks in Scotland and Wales in coming weeks.

With social distancing guidance being observed at the same time as lockdown restrictions are being relaxed, this additional capacity will allow customers to travel in comfort and safety. To further support social distancing, and in addition to passenger counting, seats on each bus are now clearly marked indicating where customers should sit.

First Bus continues to encourage cashless payments, and use of the First Bus App to purchase mTickets, to reduce the need for contact between customers and drivers.

Giles Fearnley, Managing Director of First Bus said “We are really proud to have been able to fast-track this technology to ensure safe, informed travel during these difficult times. Our buses provide an essential service for our customers and we are doing all we can to support them.”

This latest update from First Bus forms part of its ongoing work to improve the customer experience.
 

Apple store travel app link
Android store travel app link

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N.B: The app update will be available from Apple and Android app stores during the first week of June 2020 Dependent on individual phone user settings, the app may automatically update or require the phone user to manually select to update to the latest version 4.7

The app update is available to all First Bus app users in the UK and any customers downloading the app for the first time after the update will automatically have the live tracking functionality

First Bus is one of the UK’s largest bus operators. Making journeys easier for our customers, we were the first national bus operator to accept contactless card payments across all of our services and our First Bus App is voted ‘best in class’ amongst UK bus operators. Our most recent investments are in new, state-of-the-art buses across our key networks. We work proactively with our local authority partners, making a positive impact on air quality, tackling congestion and improving customer experience. We also operate the Aircoach network in Ireland.

Wild flower planting success in York

Hull Road roundabout

We haven’t always been fans of those who anat to see grassed areas left to grow “wild”. One motivation has been to help pollinators (bees) but to often they have become eyesores packed with litter and potentially hazardous thorn bushes. One case in point are the long neglected verges in Foss Islands Road.

However there is an example of a planting scheme that has gone well on Hull Road. The roundabout there is a blase of colour this summer.

This is mainly down to the efforts of Cllr Mark Warters who is himself a professional horticulturalist.

He tells us, “

“Took many years of increasingly aggressive emails and ridicule to get CYC to stop putting bedding plants in twice a year, neglecting them to the point that they were waist high in weeds and half dead through lack of water to taking on board the idea of clearing it and sowing it down with a flower mix.

Last year was the first year, the tree in the centre was planted this year January time and the whole lot should have been oversown with a permanent wildflower Mix that should take over in time from the annuals.

However given how last year’s annual Mix has sown itself and proved to be very drought resistant, colourful and requiring little if any maintenance – dead stems cut over once in the Winter – it might be worth pursuing on other roundabouts to produce a better feature and save time and money.

We hope that Councillors in other parts of the City will follow this lead. The key clearly is to prepare and maintain beds properly.

Initially at least it is probably as much work as planting bedding plants. But the results are more resilient and – in the case of Hull Road at least – require little on going maintenance.

Social distancing success

First York are using some of their Park and Ride “bendy” buses on stage carriage routes today including the number 4. This should increase capacity while allowing for safe social distancing. So far the plan seems to be working well.

Acomb Moor Meadow

Elsewhere, Acomb Moor Meadow has had its first cut of the season . This should make social distancing easier for the increased number of walkers that have been using fields like these for exercise during the health crisis.

A two metre wide strip has also been cut on Askham Lane (rural section) where this was practical. This should make safe distancing easier for those exercising in the area.

Less good news though on road safety. There was a bad crash on Bellhouse Way yesterday. No one was injured but some drivers and motorcyclists in west York seem to be using some roads as race tracks.

Accident on Bellhouse Way on Sunday

The police need to get on top of this problem as streets are set to become progressively busier with a proportionate increase in risk.

Deans Park reopens

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From 10am today Dean’s Park will reopen in the heart of York. Please respect the guidelines currently in place across the country, protect yourselves & others where possible, and enjoy your visit

The Park will remain open 10am-6pm 7 days a week.

For the health and safety of others, the Minster reminds all visitors that ball games, smoking and dogs are not permitted in the park

York Minster remains closed but it is broadcasting services via You Tube and Zoom.

There is pressure now for the remaining closed central area park – Museum Gardens – also to reopen.

One law for……

Perhaps the actions that have attracted the most criticism during lockdown nationally have been those where politicians and senior officials have been seen to break their own rules. Several have been forced to resign although, at least, one has famously not.

Not surprisingly the words and actions of their local counterparts are also now under increasing scrutiny. Tomorrow some schools will reopen while those that have carried on educating the children of Key Workers can expect an influx of additional pupils. Opinions are mixed about the timing of this move and, indeed,  the return of more people to their workplaces.

MPs have returned to Westminster albeit in a “social distancing” respecting way.

So why have the City’s democratic institutions not been revived? Apart from a couple of anaemic virtual Q & A sessions, local leaders seem to have preferred to issue the occasional policy edict.

They have seemed reluctant to submit to scrutiny.

The Councils scrutiny and audit functions – led by opposition Councillors – have been ineffective for many years, with participants trying to score political points while exploring their own self interest obsessions.

Never has there been a greater need for challenge than now when residents have so many real concerns about what has happened and what might happen if a second wave of COVID infections hits the City. Other areas are already making preparations

It seems extraordinary that City bosses can order teachers and children back to the classroom while they themselves hide behind the safety of virtual reality meetings. While the need for full scale Council meetings may be small at the present time, there is an urgent requirement for all decisions to be preceded with  good quality, informed reports. Residents should be able to hear the arguments for and against controversial decisions like the Bishopthorpe Road contraflow cycle lane.

Many paths are now obstructed

Some Council services have actually improved during lockdown.

Street cleaning standards are high and pothole reports are being dealt with more quickly. This, though, has tended to highlight the awful state of many carriageways and paths – in itself the most likely reason (together with path obstructions) why many, who have taken up walking and cycling  in  their leisure times, may now return to their cars.

Some empty council houses have attracted dumping

There has also been an increase in the number of long term empty Council houses with some homes having become dumping grounds. The repair and re-letting service needs to get into gear. They can follow the lead of  those estate agents who have successfully adapted to incorporate social distancing into their processes.

Whether some Councillors actually “get this” is unclear. They recently publish a letter saying that they estimated “that there would be over 700 (coronavirus) deaths in the City by October”.

So far there have been 126 deaths at York hospital, with a similar total in the local community. 

If another 500 deaths are expected, why on earth are we relaxing the lockdown?

9 months before new refuse collection vehicles arrive in York

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As attention focuses on the major backlog in waste collection that is developing in York, another “behind closed doors” decision has been taken to order 12 new refuse collections vehicles.

Two of the 12 will be electric vehicles. These vehicles cost approximately 2.5 times more than their conventional counterparts but are cheaper to run. They have range limitations.

There is only 1 supplier of these types of vehicle in the country and they say that January 2021 is the earliest that delivery can be expected.

The 12 vehicles will cost £3 million in total.

A further order is expected to be approved later in the summer bringing the total investment to over £6.6 million

Much of the Councils waste management fleet is well beyond its normal lifespan. This has resulted in unreliability with missed collections a feature of the last 18 months of operation. The COVID crisis has simply magnified the problems.

The Council has never satisfactorily explained why it did not continue its annual vehicle replacement programme to ensure that overall reliability levels remained acceptable.

It appears that indecision – prompted perhaps by a hope that more electric options would become available  –  led to unacceptable delays in placing orders.

The Councils internal scrutiny and audit processes should have  revealed the risks associated with such inaction.

Sadly that process didn’t seem to work.

Quite what quality of service residents can look forward to over the remainder of this year remains unclear.

York Council report May 2020