Recovery fund made available for flood affected businesses in York

A partnership between City of York Council and Make It York has secured funding from the Local Enterprise Partnership for businesses affected by the recent floods.

A grant of up to £2,500 per business has been made available by the Leeds City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) for flood incurred damage costs that are not covered by business insurance policies.

Council officers are going door-to-door, visiting businesses who have been affected by the recent flooding to provide an update on the current situation in York and answer any potential queries.

As part of the engagement, businesses are being notified of the additional funding to support the clean-up and help alleviate costs incurred by flood water.

The business recovery fund is open for application for flood affected businesses and eligibility will be determined by evidence provided. Funding is not guaranteed for flood damaged businesses.

To submit an application form via Make It York, please visit: www.makeityork.com or email business@makeityork.com

Businesses and residents are also invited to attend flood drop-in sessions to discuss support before, during and after a flood in the near future:

  • Tower Gardens and King’s Staith

16 March | Quaker Meeting House, YO1 9RL | 5-7pm

  • Naburn

17 March | Naburn Village Hall, YO19 4RS | 5-7pm

  • Fulford

18 March | Fulford School (Main Hall), YO10 4FY | 5-7 pm

  • Skeldergate and Clementhorpe

23 March | Southlands Methodist Church, YO23 1NX| 5-7pm

  • Acaster Malbis

24 March | Acaster Malbis Village Hall, YO23 2TR | 5 -7pm

(more…)

Reprieve for number 3A and 12 bus services in west York

In September the current operator of services 3A and 12, First York, announced that they planned to withdraw service 3A (the 7-day per week evening Askham Bar Park & Ride service) and part of service 12 (specifically the section between Foxwood Lane and Alness Drive) as they were “no longer commercially viable”.

The Council agreed to subsidise the services until the end of the financial year, while seeking tenders for their continuation.

The cost of continuing the services is £24,000 for the 3A and £65,000 for the 12.

The Council is being recommended to use part of a government funded bus service operators grant (worth £150,416 in total) to subside these two services. The Council already allocates over £700,000 a year for bus service subsidies (not including the cost of the free pensioners bus pass, which is funded from central taxation).

The Council is banking on the two services being more popular in the future and therefore requiring a lower subsidy.

It says demand for service 3A may increase when the planned paid overnight parking service at Askham Bar Park & Ride site comes into action in spring 2020 and that demand for service 12 may increase when the LNER Community Stadium (at the other end of the route) opens in 2020.

Improvements in other bus services

Through the “Funding for Local Bus Services 2020-21” scheme, the council has the opportunity to bid for £83.5k one-off funding in order to achieve one or more of the following objectives (which must deliver an increase in services and therefore the 12 and 3A services are not eligible as they currently exist):

  • “to improve current local bus services – for instance increasing evening or weekend frequencies, or supporting additional seasonal services in tourist areas.
  • “to restore lost bus routes where most needed to ensure people have access to public transport services.
  • “to support new bus services, or extensions to current services, to access e.g. new housing, employment opportunities, healthcare facilities etc.”

The funding must be used for the provision of local bus services- i.e. time tabled services open to any member of the public upon payment of a fare.

The funding available in York is £83.5k – equivalent to the operating costs for a single bus for approximately 8 months. It would not therefore have a major impact on service levels.

The City has submitted a bid for “a package of enhancements to routes which support York’s evening economy”

Still problems with cycle network in York

Its not just the burgeoning number of potholes that are causing problems for cyclists. The Council has fallen behind in many areas with its white line refreshment programme.

Clifton Bridge cycle lane almost disappeared
More instances on graffiti reported today. This one near the Ouse riverbank
  • Ouse within its banks today
  • A lot of work done to clear the riverside paths
  • Debris piled near to the Ouse. All paths open

City set to ditch electric sightseeing bus trial

York-03_P_264_70c11a22-aeed-4328-857a-66_P_264_feb74715-865d-4a32-a587-e80052a389a7

The Council is being recommended to ditch a trial which has seen City Tour buses converted to run on battery power. Apparently, a trial of “retrofitting” buses to run on electricity, started 5 years ago, has been judged a failure due to reliability problems.

A grant to convert some of the 6 open-top buses used on York’s City Sightseeing tour service from diesel engines to be fully electric was approved in 2013. The buses had been criticised during the last decade  for affecting air quality standards on some of the City’s narrower streets.

A report to a meeting next week says that in York , and other open top tour city’s, the conversion has not achieved high reliability standards. Only 4 buses were converted and many of the services provided by them had to be run by substitute diesel powered buses.

A “Clean Air Zone” has been introduced in the City centre. This means that those buses regularly accessing the City centre must either be electric or must meet the more stringent Euro VI diesel emission standards.

It is understood that the operators of the services have tried to obtain open topped low emission vehicles but currently none are available either as electrics or with Euro VI standard engines at affordable prices..

It looks like the open top service will cease later this year with conventional layout buses being substituted.

NB. There has been extensive investment in electric buses in the City. York will have one of the UK’s highest proportion of mileage operated by electric buses once the new park and ride electric fleet arrives over the next 3 months

York’s new green fleet plan

 

City of York Council is set to transform it’s fleet of vehicles and become a leader in the fight to reduce the city’s carbon emissions with an ambition to be carbon neutral by 2030.

The council will be taking a report outlining the full details to an Executive meeting on 19 March.

This includes reducing the carbon emissions from the council’s fleet (of 535 vehicles under 3.5 tonnes) by a third.

The fleet is valued at £15.3 million and includes 180 vehicles that are under 3.5 tonnes and 153 which are currently due to be replaced over the next three years. Together they emit a total of 1,763 tonnes of CO2 every year.

Under the new proposals, the council would like to transition to a green /electric fleet over a four year phased period.

This will include:

Year one: securing the infrastructure to enable an electric fleet to operate at council sites. Ordering three electric waste vehicles.

Year two: services that are ready for an electric fleet now can make the change as the infrastructure will now be in place.For those services that require some changes to the way they operate, a third of the vehicles will move to electric.

Years three and four.Those services that need a phased approach will be progressed to a 100% electric as quickly as possible.

The financial implications of moving towards an electric fleet would vary depending on the size and type of vehicle and would need to factor in the infrastructure costs to support the green fleet too at council sites.

In order to achieve this, a fleet replacement programme is proposed which will be considered on an annual basis as part of the annual capital programme. However, as option three is the preferred option – this is estimated to cost in the region of £2.22 million.

The council has already implemented a number of measures to address these challenges including introducing a clean air zone for buses and the transition of the Park & Ride fleet of buses to electric double decker buses will be completed this year.

(more…)

Electric vehicle charging strategy for York revealed

 

City of York Council is set to introduce a new electric vehicle (EV) charging strategy which will transform and accelerate EV take up across the city.

A report detailing the proposal will be taken to a public Executive meeting on 19 March for approval.

This follows the authority declaring a climate change emergency in 2019 and approving plans to work towards becoming carbon neutral by 2030.

If approved, the council will introduce Fast EV chargepoints to at least a minimum of five per cent of all its long stay parking bays in council owned car parks by 2023.

This will cost circa £800,000 and will be subject to successful external funding bids and reviewed as part of the development of the Local Transport Plan later this year.

To complement the enhanced fast charger network the council is also developing two Hyper Hub sites which will provide state of the art rapid and ultra-rapid facilities. Subject to securing further external funding, a third site is also being developed.

A part of the proposals will be to ensure it offers an equal opportunity for all users (with on street and off street parking) and to ensure that tariffs are set at a fair rate.

The current tariff of 15 p/kWh, hasn’t been revised since it was set in 2013, so a key element of the strategy is to review the tariff price point.

The council’s proposed tariff approach will take into account increases in electricity and running costs to ensure that the network is financially sustainable. During 2020/2021 it is proposed to increase the tariff to 20 p/kWh for fast chargers and 25 p/kWh for rapid and ultra-rapid chargers. All new rapid and ultra-rapid units will allow bank card payments for the same 25 p/kWh fee.

Regular users will have the option of signing up to a subscription Network where they will pay a monthly fee in return for lower usage tariffs.

Tariffs will be reviewed every year and electricity supplying the chargepoints will be part of the council’s energy contract which purchases renewable energy.

New conditions will also be introduced to ensure that users of EV bays are using them principally to charge their vehicles. Enforcement action could be taken where a vehicle is using a bay and is not plugged into the charging point. Time limits could also be imposed.

Frequently Asked Questions:

(more…)

Bleak outlook on Ascot Way

Contractions working on the new Centre of Excellence for Disabled Children on Ascot Way have demolished the local residents noticeboard. It has been left lying on the grass verge. No prior warning of the removal was given.

There are places where the noticeboard could be reinstated with a few minutes work.

The access arrangements for the site are also proving problematic A one way system for heavy plant was supposed to be in operation but this wasn’t working well today. Buses struggled to get by

One piece of good news is that the temporary bus stop is now accessible again

Age-friendly York surveys older people’s leisure time

Age-friendly York has launched a new consultation on how older people spend their leisure time in the city and how they’d actually like to spend it.

Your Leisure Time consultation is at www.york.gov.uk/AgeFriendlyYork  and asks for views on activities and how to find them, volunteering and loneliness. Past surveys have highlighted social isolation is an issue which we’re addressing by providing opportunities to socialise like chatty bench and a chatty café. The survey asks about these initiatives and a shared restaurant table scheme. The questionnaire takes about 10 minutes to complete.

Earlier Age-Friendly surveys held last year were on Your Journey in August and Your Destination in October. Over 200 people took part and provided high-quality information and comments. Among the outcomes, includes a survey of benches in the city, their location, condition and plotting them on a map.

Following an earlier survey in 2017 when 23% of respondents said they experienced loneliness, we and partners developed www.LiveWellYork.co.uk which now lists some 640 activities, events or volunteering opportunities.

Councillor Carol Runciman, Executive Member for Adult Social Care and Health said: “Being an age-friendly city is a welcome step towards making the city an even better place for older residents.

“Better understanding their preferences or concerns means we can work with partners to address them. We can then build on initiatives like the falls prevention service, or our older people’s accommodation programme to support people to live as independently and as well as possible in later life.

“We know social isolation can be an issue, and this survey will help us understand the barriers people face to socialising, so we can create the right solutions. In the same way, we know accessing community transport at peak times can be difficult, so Age Friendly York is working with the Community Transport Group to find solutions.”

The surveys are open to any older York residents, anyone who works with or cares for older people or those who are planning ahead for older age. Printed copies and large print versions of the consultation are available on request to AgeFriendlyYork@york.gov.uk. Please email this address is you’re interested in getting involved in Age Friendly York.

Other consultations planned by Age Friendly York are on Your Access to Information; Your Home and Your Services.

York residents invited to share their experiences at flood drop-in sessions

Residents and businesses in York are invited to drop-in sessions in their local neighbourhoods to discuss recent flooding events.

As the city continues the clean-up operation following the rise in river levels caused by Storm Ciara and Storm Dennis, local residents and businesses are encouraged to share their feedback and experiences of recent events to help the council build upon the city’s resilience and improve local preparedness for the future.

Representatives from Emergency Planning, the Flood Risk Management Team, Community Involvement Officers and Councillors will be among those representing the council at the events across the city.

The upcoming drop-in sessions will be held in the following venues:

Fishergate: 11 March | Christian Science Church, YO10 4DE | 6-8pm

Tower Gardens and King’s Staith: 16 March | Quaker Meeting House, YO1 9RL | 5-7pm

Naburn: 17 March | Naburn Village Hall, YO19 4RS | 5-7pm

Fulford: 18 March | Fulford School (Main Hall), YO10 4FY | 5-7 pm (Presentation by the Environment Agency about Fordlands Road area at 6pm)

Skeldergate and Clementhorpe: 23 March | Southlands Methodist Church, YO23 1NX| 5-7pm

Acaster Malbis: 24 March | Acaster Malbis Village Hall, YO23 2TR | 5 -7pm

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

“I look forward to meeting residents and business owners across the city so we can listen and learn from the recent flood events.
“This is a great opportunity to share with us what you thought worked, how we can improve protecting the city, or the best way we can keep you up to date with the latest information.
“We recognise different areas have very different experiences and concerns, so we are holding drop-ins at key locations across the city so local residents can share their local and specific concerns.
“Thank you to all the residents and businesses who have already shared their positive encouragement and useful feedback with us.”

Across the three week period of high river levels the council had:

  • crews focusing on community areas to start the clean-up operation – crews have washed down areas using sanitising disinfectant where appropriate
  • dealt with over 60 dangerous or storm damaged trees since Storm Ciara
  • deployed over 6,000 sandbags and 200 one-tonne sandbags across the city to help protect the most vulnerable properties.
  • installed around 25 pumps to clear water across the city
  • recycled any plastic sandbags. Contaminated sandbags will be disposed of through our contaminated waste removal. Sand will be reused at the council depot
  • cleared over 300 gullies, swept roads and cleared drains.
  • tankers were on standby for any surface water flooding incidents that occurred
  • regularly updated the www.york.gov.uk/flood page to share the latest updates and advice

Shocking list of empty Council owned properties in York

Thursday can’t come soon enough for York taxpayers. On that day the City’s planning committee will decide whether to allow the Ashbank former social services building on Shipton Road to be converted into residential accommodation.

Ashbank has now been empty for a shocking 7 years.

Together with the Guildhall, it is the Councils most underused asset.

The above list was produced in response to a Freedom of Information request. The rates column indicates what the Council might have received if the properties had been let. To this must be added either the proceeds of a sale or lease income.

Several other valuable properties including Oakhaven in Acomb and the prime Willow House site next to the bar walls have also now been unused for over 3 years.

There are ongoing maintenance and security costs at each site.

The list does not include several brownfield sites which are suitable for development. These include the land to the rear of Acomb Library which was purchased 12 years ago but remains unused (currently it is a building compound).

Many years ago the Council used to have a Policy and Resources committee. One of its tasks was to challenge and optimise the use of the Councils portfolio. Sadly it was replaced by a “scrutiny” committee which rarely expresses any interest in the efficiency of the Councils processes.

Six monthly capital programme reports to the Councils Executive often fail to provide an update on long term unused assets. When they do get a mention it is restricted to a couple of anodyne sentences.

It is not just commercial properties that are a cause for concern.

The Councils housing department still often has a 10% vacancy rate on its garage blocks. There are waiting lists for garages in most parts of the City. Some of the garages are located in the City Centre where demand is high.

January 2020

The housing department has been told to advertise all vacancies in order to maximise income. They have failed to do so.

They don’t even make full use of free social media channels.

The result is that the Council loses thousands of pounds of income each month while on street parking spaces becomes unnecessarily congested.