It looks like the York Council will reintroduce cycling
access on High Petergate. The street which links through Bootham Bar was pedestrianised
many years ago.
This did make cyclists traveling north to south dismount or take a more circuitous route.
Shared pedestrian/cycle space can work and is popular in
some continental City’s such as Bruges.
However, in York, there are some cyclists who travel too
fast in shared spaces like that around the Minster and the narrow streets
around Bootham Bar are often packed with tourists who may be unaware of local
conventions.
So we hope that any trial will include advice for cyclists
to give way to pedestrians.
A decision on the plan is expected to be taken at a meeting being held on 24th October.
NB. Any cycle routes will permit cycling in High Petergate in a southerly direction (i.e. from Bootham Bar to Duncombe Place ) only at all times. The street would remain one way. There are no plans to allow cycling in other footstreets.
Temporary measures introduced to protect York’s busiest city centre spaces from terrorist attacks could be made permanent by City of York Council next week.
Phase 1 of the vehicle exclusion zone
The Council’s Executive will consider the results of a trial restricting vehicle access to the busiest city centre streets during footstreet hours (10:30-17:00) at its meeting next Thursday (29 August)
The Councils consultation revealed major conflicts with the wishes of groups representing disabled people
More disabled parking is planned for Piccadilly
It has been criticised by a former Tory Councillor who said on social media “Almost everyone wants to pedestrianise our city centre. It should be about improving it and supporting business growth in difficult times…not terrorism”
Changes were introduced last November following police counter terrorism advice for long-term measures to combat the ongoing threat of ‘vehicle as weapon attacks’ like those seen recently in Toronto, London and Nice.
If approved, a sliding bollard system would restrict access to Parliament Street, St Sampson’s Square, High Ousegate and Spurriergate, Coney Street, Davygate, Finkle Street, Church Street and Jubbergate during footstreet hours (10:30-17:00).
“Sliding” bollards are planned for the entrances to several streets.
The Executive introduced the measures on a temporary basis to allow for work to understand the impact of restricted access on key groups, including disabled people and others with limited mobility within a core part of the city centre.
The council commissioned studies of how blue badge parking changed throughout the period, alongside a series of workshops with individuals and groups representing disabled people in York.
In addition to the available parking on the streets next to the restricted area, the executive will consider mitigation proposals including:
• continued access to St Sampson’s Square for Dial and Ride services
• creating blue badge parking on the traffic-restricted section of Piccadilly, and converting the taxi rank to blue badge parking during the day time (10:00-18:00)
• extending the parking time restrictions outside Explore on Museum Street from 2 to 3 hours
• supporting marketing efforts for alternative services like Shopmobility and Dial and Ride
*If approved, the Piccadilly changes would be subject to a traffic regulation order change. The proposed changes would be advertised for up a three week period to allow for objections before a decision can be made.
Experiments with rising bollards in the past in York have encountered reliability issues. Reliability and maintenance costs are not considered in trhe Council report.
City centre future
The same meeting will consider launching a consultation exerciseon the future of the City centre retail area. The area has change a lot in recent years with several shops being replaced by pubs and restaurants.
Problems with drunken behaviour have increased.
If approved, an engagement exercise “following the principles of early and ongoing public involvement, pioneered on the Castle Gateway regeneration scheme”, would begin in the new year.
This would deliver a “strategic vision for the city centre to guide future development, regeneration and investment decisions”.
The proposal has the support of the York BID and “Make it York”.
The Council report fails to address the needs of sub-urban high streets like Front Street
“We will be making some changes to our services on the above date, timetables will be available on-line from Thursday 14th August”.
Service 10
We are pleased to be operating the evening service once again with some minor changes to times.
Additional journeys will also operate;
2045 Rougier Street to Stamford Bridge (Monday – Saturday)
2120 Stamford bridge to Merchantgate (Monday – Saturday)
0730 Stamford Bridge to York (Sundays)
Service 12
Changes to the early Saturday morning timetable.
A revised service will operate in the evenings between 1900 to 2100 providing journeys between Stonebow and Woodthorpe. These will operate to Woodthorpe as normal route to Moor Lane, then via Acomb Park Old Moor Lane (layby), terminating at Woodthorpe Shops. The last First Bus from Woodthorpe to York will leave at 2125.
Journeys after 2100 to Woodthorpe will be undertaken by service 14 which will be undertaken by another operator under contract to City of York Council.
The 1818 from Monks Cross will be retimed to operate at 1810, and an additional journey from Monks Cross at 1835 and will operate through to Woodthorpe.
Service 14
Because of a tendering process, we will no longer be the operator of the 14-evening service, due to this being awarded to another operator.
We will however operate some additional service 12 journeys between 1900 to 2100 providing journeys between Stonebow and Woodthorpe. These will operate to Woodthorpe as normal route to Moor Lane, then via Acomb Park Old Moor Lane (layby), terminating at Woodthorpe Shops. The last First Bus from Woodthorpe to York will leave at 2125.
Journeys after 2100 to Woodthorpe, and 1215 to York will be undertaken by service 14 which will be undertaken by another operator under contract to City of York Council.
Service 26
Because of a tendering process, we will no longer be the operator of the 26 Friday and Saturday evening service. Due to this being awarded to another operator.
NB. These are subsidised services which have been put out to competitive tender by the York Council. Unfortunately the Council has not formally announced the results of the tender process nor has it issued a media statement indicating which operators (and to what timetable) will operate each service from September.
Still problems with hedges and trees blocking cycle and footpaths
The weather has had one positive influence. Brambles have flourished and their is an abundant free harvest available at places like little Hob Moor.Unfortunately the adjacent cycle track on little Hob Moor can now be added to the list of obstructed paths. We’ve suggested to the Council that they need to organise a “task force” to go round removing overgrown branches and weeds from paths. They’ll also need to monitor highway trees as several are now banging on the sides and roofs of double deck buses as they pass.A task group might also usefully clean off signage which is now unreadable. This sign is intended to help disabled users to access Hob Moor.
This sign is on Bellhouse WayOne piece of good news though is that the bramble bush which was blocking the little Green Lane footpath near the school entrance has been cut back.
The York Business Improvement District(BID) team is reminding residents that additional cycle parking facilities were provided earlier in the year. Funded by the BID, the security hoops can be found at the following locations
# Blake Street
# High Petergate
# Spark: York Piccadilly
# Lord Mayors Walk
#Esplanade
#Deangate
#St Maurice’s Road
#George Street
#Castlegate Area
The overall capacity of city centre cycle parking was increased by 10%. Along with this the BID brought seven new signposts showing a map of the cities cycle routes and all the available cycle parking.
Each of the cycle racks features information and maps
detailing cycle routes and parking around the city centre.
York BID’s Street Rangers
also play a role in ensuring that as much bike parking is available as possible, by
monitoring bikes that have been abandoned throughout all
of the city’s cycle parking facilities.
“There is a high demand for dedicated cycle
racks, so we regularly look out for bikes that have been left for long periods of
time, and work with City of York Council to remove those that go unclaimed,”
Tags are attached to any bicycle that appears
to have been abandoned, and if it not moved after a month, it is taken away for
storage for a further month, before any unclaimed bikes are recycled and sold.
A cycling map can be downloaded from this link (click)
Link to A1237 incorporates bridleway friendly gates.
Gate design allows horses to step through without opening gate.
The long awaited off road cycle track link from Rufforth to the northern by pass has opened. The route finishes opposite the entrance to Main Street Knapton.
The path offers a relatively quiet link for pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders.
The route was not entirely uncontroversial with some fearing that it might be misused by motorcyclists.
There was also a concern that cyclists would find it hazardous to cross the busy A1237 although this would have been an issue at other possible locations.
NB. One parent, on reaching the cycle path this afternoon, explained to his young son that the dip in the middle of the gate was to allow access for large animals. His son replied, “Large animals? Like horses, elephants and dinosaurs?” An unexpected new hazard for residents of Knapton perhaps!
Partners working to improve York for its older residents have launched a consultation on getting out and about in the city.
The consultation has been launched at www.york.gov.uk/AgeFriendlyYork and will run until 9 August. This is a new step towards making the city more age-friendly and an even better place for older residents.
With around ten percent of York’s population aged over 65 – one third of whom live alone – the city has joined the UK network of Age Friendly communities which are linked to the World Health Organisation.
York aims to help older people live healthy and active later lives, that they are happy and are in good health while living in their community. Being an Age Friendly city means that older residents are encouraged to become active citizens, shaping the place that they live in by working alongside local groups, council and businesses to identify and make changes to the physical and social environment they live in.
In York, this will be done by working towards improving the choices older people have regarding how they can travel and where they travel to, how they spend their time and access information, the quality of their housing and services for older people.
The initiative is supported by the York Health and Wellbeing Board, and partners will work with City of York Council, York Older People’s Assembly, York CVS as well as local groups and businesses to engage older people and key stakeholders about their lives and to ask for suggestions to make the city more age friendly.
We urge residents to report what appears to be an increasing number of instances of paths being obstructed by hedges in the City
The cycle path on Field Lane in the Hull Road ward is now completely blocked. Hasn’t happened overnight!
The public footpath on Hull Road outside The Elms is now completely obstructed. Potentially dangerous on what is a busy road. Pedestrians are being forced onto the carriageway.
Not a hazard (yet) but gutters in Maple Grove are choked with weeds. Verges an eclectic mix of weeds and wildflowers
The Thanet Road cycle track on the other side of the City has its share of obstructions but the main issue here continues to be litter.
Following the recent decision by the Secretary of State not to call in the planning decision for York Central , City of York Council says it will “now continue to maintain momentum across the York Central site with the decision to release the next tranche of funding for the project”.
“The Council will now engage with its construction partner in finalising the design work for the enabling infrastructure; this includes the access road bridge and spine road through the site, a pedestrian bridge on Water End and a rail link to the NRM”.
There is no mention of addressing the “elephant in the room”. That is the major outstanding issue. – cycle/pedestrian movement from Leeman Road to the riverside and the City centre
The early plan showed a shared cycle track still using the (appalling) Marble Arch tunnel (which still has no waterproof membrane). Vehicle movements would be traffic light controlled, with public transport one of the main victims
This simply won’t do.
The Council needs to find an alternative route possibly via a new tunnel built to modern standards which provides access to the green spaces next to the river while also providing a traffic free cycle link to the City centre and beyond.
Te Council must address this issue in its imminent submission of a Reserved Matters planning application to open up the site.
The planning application will be funded partly by Homes England and partly from the York Central Capital budget agreed by Council in November 2018.
A report to the Councils Executive next week also sets out what opportunities can be taken, moving forward, to maximise the benefits of the York Central site; including a greater proportion of affordable homes, higher sustainable build standards, inclusion of York Central in the Clean Air Zone and an option to build a new bus lane ahead of schedule.
A report, published today, sets out the key benefits already secured, including:
· extensive pedestrian and cycle route provision into and through the site
· 20% of homes available at affordable rates,
· the highest sustainable design standards , and
· around £15m developer contributions to improve transport infrastructure to encourage more bus passengers, cyclists and pedestrians.
The report outlines that the council, while waiting for government decisions on planning and funding, will work with the York Central partnership to explore other measures to amplify these benefits.
For housing, this could mean a greater proportion of affordable homes, higher sustainable build standards and community self-build in early phases of the development.
To improve the environmental impact, the council could require sustainable energy generation on site, include York Central in the bus Clean Air Zone, increase the number of electric charging points and build a new bus lane ahead of schedule to increase more journeys by sustainable transport.
The report highlights the delays to the programme due to the referral of the planning decision to the Secretary of State, and the decision over an application for £77.1m to the government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund. The report asks the council to allocate £750,000 to fund early contractor involvement to finalise a planning application for the bridge and spine road which will allow access to the site from Water End.
The York Central Partnership (YCP) members, Homes England, Network Rail, The Railway Museum and City of York Council, have been working collaboratively for the past four years to develop proposals and assemble a £155m funding package for infrastructure works to unlock the brownfield land. City of York’s Council has played a key role in providing significant funding streams to help deliver the project and fund the enabling access and infrastructure works.
York Central
The approved outline planning application includes proposals to build 2,500 homes, 20 per cent of which will be affordable, and a commercial quarter creating up to 6,500 jobs adding a £1.16 billion boost to the economy.
The Executive meeting takes place on 18th July. The York Central report can be found byclicking here.
