City centre repaving consultation

The York Council is delivering a leaflet to all households outlining its plans for resurfacing works in the City centre.

Exhibition Square plans

Exhibition Square plans

They are right to do so but, in pointing to improvements planned for Exhibition Square, Blake Street and Fossgate, they lamentably fail to answer the question that will be on every taxpayer’s lips.

How much will these paving schemes cost?

There is little new in the leaflet.  The Labour Council changed the Council’s forward programme in 2011 putting the modernisation of Kings Square ahead of the Fossgate pedestrianisation scheme which had been set to go ahead in 2012.

Next in line were to have been improvements to Duncombe Place, which could have provided a large and useful pedestrian precinct.

But the Councils increasing financial problems meant that progress would inevitably have slowed.

Residents might usefully have been asked when completing the “on line” survey whether they want any of these schemes to go ahead or whether the money might be better spent repairing the roads in sub-urban areas?

The danger in the Councils approach is that the improvement of the City centre may become politically toxic.

Against a background of plans for a further £1 million cut in road maintenance in sub-urban areas, residents are likely to demand of Council candidates – at the next local elections in 2015 – a commitment to improving public service standards in residential areas.

The City centre may find that its share of available resources is reduced.

Updated public opinion survey results – Lendal Bridge closure, traffic congestion, 20 mph speed limits

These are the public opinion survey results for West York updated as at 20th December 2013.

Traffic   congestion getting worse? Agree 91%
Disagree 2%
Unde 7%
Lendal   Bridge closure a success Agree 7%
Disagree 80%
Unde 13%
Lendal   bridge – lift access restrictions Agree 87%
Disagree 5%
Unde 8%
No   justification for building in Green Belt Agree 90%
Disagree 3%
Unde 7%
Public   service standards are deteriorating Agree 89%
Disagree 2%
Unde 9%
I am opposed to city wide 20 mph speed limit Agree 81%
Disagree 7%
Unde 12%

The Council is also conducting an “on line” poll on the Lendal Bridge “trial”

It can be accessed by clicking here.

Shopper numbers down 10% in York City Centre.

285,000 fewer people have visited the Parliament Street area since new traffic restrictions were introduced in August.

Shambles empty
The number of visitors to the City has dropped dramatically since the new restrictions were introduced on Coppergate and on Lendal Bridge.

The latest figures have been released by the York Council following a Freedom of Information request

In total, footfall cameras on Parliament Street recorded 2.695 million people between 1st August and the start of the St Nicholas Fayre on 28th November.

The equivalent figure for 2012 was 2.980 million, a fall of 10%.

Figures recovered over the 4 days of the St Nicholas Fayre although the concentration of footfall may have been influenced by the positioning of the market.

The figures are even more disappointing given the relatively good weather that we have experienced so far this autumn.

They confirm that the new restrictions are having a major adverse effect on the economic viability of many retailers in the City centre.

The Council has previously resisted calls for the restrictions to be suspended at least until the busy pre Christmas period is over.

  • The detailed figures are:
  • August 746,340 visitors (780,646 in 2012 – 4%)
  • September 699,042 (798,182 – 12%)
  • October 717,634 (775,144 – 7%)
  • November 532,157 (646,226 -18%) to start of St Nicholas Fayre on 28th November

By contrast, in the first 7 months of the year, visitor numbers had fallen by a total of 5% with the decrease being blamed on a large increase in car parking charges.

A spreadsheet showing individual figures for each day can be found by clicking here.

A Council survey on residents and visitors reactions to the traffic restrictions can be found here

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/lendalsurvey

 

Lendal Bridge – Council conduct on line poll

Lendal Bridge closure Nov 2013

Attempts by the council’s leadership to justify the Lendal bridge closure on Radio York today are being greeted with derision by most listeners.

The Council have singularly failed to provide update reports on footfall (shopper numbers), accidents, journey times (all classes of vehicle), air quality and the levels of successful appeals against the fines imposed by the number plate recognition cameras.

However they are now conducting an “on line” survey of resident’s views.

The chances are that few will even know that this is going on so the results will be open to manipulation.

Click here to take the survey (it takes only about 1 minute to complete)

Meanwhile the Liberal Democrats survey – conducted through a house to house delivery to 7000 properties in west York – has attracted a large response. Around 10% of the forms have now been returned and analysed.  The percentages are now stable. The latest figures are:

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

90% say “lift Lendal Bridge access restrictions”

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click to enlarge

An overwhelming majority of residents have given the thumbs down to the current closure restrictions on Lendal Bridge.

Responding to a survey carried out by the Liberal Democrats, in the Dringhouses, Woodthorpe and Hob Moor areas, only 8% have said that the trial is a success.

90% want the restrictions to be removed.

A massive 95% say that traffic congestion in the City has got worse over recent months.

Stand and deliver Labour adopt traditional approach to transport funding in York

Stand and deliver
Labour adopt traditional approach to transport funding in York

The results underpin the findings from other sources.

Over 35,000 penalty notices have been issued since the Lendal Bridge and Coppergate ANPR cameras were installed.

The influential “Trip Advisor” web site has logged a large number of complaints from visitors who are vowing never to visit the City again.

A Facebook page has also been set up by opponents of the restrictions.

The Council leadership continue to maintain an air of lofty indifference to resident’s views prompting new calls for a referendum on the future of the restrictions.

An opportunity to test resident’s views, at a reasonable cost, will come on 22nd May when European Parliament elections are already scheduled to take place.

By then, however, some traders may have been forced to close as City centre shopper numbers continue to fall.

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There is no consolation for the Council’s Leadership from residents other responses to the survey.

88% say there is no justification for Labours plans to build on the Green Belt, while 80% remain opposed to a wide area 20 mph speed limit.

Most damming verdict comes from the 93% who believe that public service standards have got worse since Labour took office.

No one who has responded so far believes that standards have got better.

Citywide childcare survey launches

City of York Council is asking mums, dads, carers and parents-to-be in York what they think about childcare in the city this autumn.

childcare

The council has launched a citywide consultation to find out whether there is enough high quality childcare in York, whether it’s available at the right time, in the right place and at an affordable price.

The results of the survey will be used to help shape childcare provision in the future.

Carers, parents and parents-to-be can take part in the consultation in a number of ways:

• Online at www.yor-ok.org.uk/childcare

• By calling the council’s Family Information Service on 01904 554444

• By collecting a copy of the questionnaire from the reception at West Offices

• By taking part in focus groups run at different locations around York

The consultation will run until the end of December.

For further information please contact York Family Information Service on 01904 554444 or fis@york.gov.uk.

Residents invited to take part in late night economy consultation

City of York Council is inviting residents and visitors to share their experience of and thoughts on York’s evening and night time economy to support plans to improve its quality and long-term future.

JA knight

This single consultation will feed into three cross-party council Overview and Scrutiny Committees and, as such, is the first to cover such a broad sweep of interests from leisure to business and the public realm. It will inform work to develop a vision of what the evening and night time economy in York might look like in five years time – to be called Yorkafter5.

Feedback will also add to that gathered from an earlier consultation on proposals for a late night levy and the impact of alcohol on the late night economy.

(more…)

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

York residents survey results click to enlarge

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.

Council service satisfaction levels down as £1.4 million now allocated to pay for Tour De France start,

Public satisfaction with the way that the Labour Council is performing is dropping according to the authorities own figures.

Around 4000 residents responded to a Council survey. The percentage satisfied with the way that the Council runs things dropped from 63% to 54% in just 12 months.

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click to enlarge


The results need to be viewed with caution given the volatility of public opinion – and the likely sample bias on a post back survey – but other polls tell a similar story.

The Council could have taken the opportunity to test public opinion on a range of controversial issues such as:

• The proposed cuts to the number of roads being gritted this winter and the planned removal of self help salt bins.

• It’s plans to expand the size of the City by 25% over the next 15 years

• Changes to bus services and its refusal to publish reliability figures

• The bungled changes to refuse collection arrangements.

• Secret “behind closed doors” decision making.

• The introduction of wide area 20 mph speed limits

• The Lendal Bridge and Coppergate traffic restrictions.

Without these figures the Council may find it difficult to understand why its reputation is suffering.

Meanwhile Labour are now admitting that York taxpayers face an enormous £1.4 million bill for hosting the second day start of the Tour De France.

That is over and above the money being taken from existing budgets such as highways resurfacing.

Put in context, the annual repayment costs on the money borrowed to fund this one day event will be over £100,000 or enough to sustain existing winter maintenance (de-icing) standards for the next 20 years.

It is probably not surprising that residents weren’t given the opportunity to comment, in the Council’s survey, on this priority.