Stagecoach and Virgin Group are the new operators of the InterCity East Coast franchise operating passenger trains along the East Coast Main Line (ECML) .
Details of he companies plans can be read by clicking here
“Free” Wi-Fi on all of York’s Park & Ride bus services
Bus operator First and City of York Council have today officially launched a free WI-FI service for tens of thousands of bus users thanks to York’s share of £50 million from the government’s Super-Connected Cities programme fund.
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Free lights scheme to keep York cyclists safe
North Yorkshire Police and City of York Council have joined forces to help keep cyclists safe this winter.
During the dark nights, North Yorkshire Police’s Cycle Response Team are handing out free LED cycle lights to people who they stop riding without them while out on patrol.
Officers are giving the lights, which have been supplied by City Of York Council’s Road Safety Team, to people cycling alone to help keep them safe.
Not everyone officers stop will be entitled to the cycle lights. They will be given to youngsters or other vulnerable people who would otherwise have to walk home if they were forced to continue their journey without lights.
Officers are also giving out reflective back pack covers.
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York’s first low emission taxi company
York’s ‘first low emission taxi company’ is gearing up to help people get from ‘a to b’ with its new green fleet.
Prius taxi in New York
Following support from City of York Council, Streamline Taxis has become the first taxi service in York to operate low emission vehicles with 10 new hybrid taxis and one electric taxi. In addition to this, the taxi company has traded in a number of older diesel cabs which will improve air pollution in York.
This follows a scheme which the council launched in 2013 which offered taxi companies discounts off the purchase price of new and used low emission taxis.
York was the first city in the UK to offer taxi drivers funding towards the price of a low emission taxi to help to reduce air pollution through the Low Emission Taxi incentive, which offers up to £3,000 off the purchase price of a new or used hybrid or electric taxi up to five-years old.
The scheme is funded by the government’s Local Sustainable Transport Fund (LSTF or i-Travel York) and has seen an investment of £67k used over the past two financial years.
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Consultation on proposed improvements to A19 junction near Designer Outlet
City of York Council is undertaking a targeted consultation on a scheme to improve one of York’s busiest road interchanges.
Proposed extra lane for A19 announced
The consultation on proposed changes to the A19/A64 junction forms the first phase in the A19 Pinch Point Scheme, which York received approximately £2million for from the government’s Department for Transport, aimed at helping support growth and tackle congestion.
The council is now consulting users of the junction on proposed changes which include the addition of an extra inbound lane on the A19 on approach to the Designer Outlet / A64 roundabout.
Plans also include a new additional inbound bus-lane between the two roundabouts which would link into the existing bus-lane on the A19 north of this junction. These works would increase the capacity of this junction and save users time on their journeys through this major interchange.
The council bid for and successfully secured millions in funding from a share of the £170 million government Pinch Point Funding in 2013 to protect the A19 from any future closure.
York received approximately £2million from the Department for Transport towards the cost of the £4.7m project which will help towards supporting local transport schemes that tackle congestion and support growth.
York air quality consultation starts
Residents and other key stakeholders are today being invited to comment on a new draft Air Quality Action Plan (AQAP3) for York.
In March 1915 York Corporation Tramways Department was one of the very first operators in the country to use electric buses and to this day, there are still two relics of this pioneering form of transport in the City – the shelters at Clifton Green and Malton Road Corner, which were built as charging points for the buses
The consultation runs from 21 November to 2 January 2015 and provides an opportunity to comment on proposals to further reduce emissions and improve air quality in York during the next five years (2015 -2020).
The draft AQAP can be viewed online at www.york.gov.uk/consultations .
Paper copies will also be available in all York Explore libraries and at West Offices reception.
Support from the government’s Green Bus Fund enabled York to become the first city in the north to introduce a fleet of electric buses to its Park&Ride service and more recently a Cleaner Vehicle Technology Fund (CVTF) grant allowed Transdev to convert one of its tour buses to a fully electric drive train.
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Fresh call to repay all Lendal Bridge fines
Liberal Democrats are making a fresh call for all Lendal Bridge fines to be repaid following the resignation of council leader James Alexander.
Lendal bridge – always been busy at 5;00pm
Lib Dem Group Leader Cllr Keith Aspden will move a motion at next month’s Full Council meeting (11th December) calling for all fined motorists to be automatically refunded. He will be seeking support from other councillors to back the move in the coming days.
Cllr Aspden says the refunds need to be part of a wider rethink of council policies following the resignation of the Labour council leader yesterday.
Cllr Keith Aspden, Liberal Democrat Group Leader in York, commented:
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Bus use in York stable but fears for subsidised services grow
Some park and ride sites to operate free service on Boxing Day
Labour Councillors have announced that they will be considering reducing subsidised bus services in the City at a meeting which will be held on 11th December.
Labour were criticised during the recent Westfield by election for keeping secret their plans to reduce services like the number 13A which serves the Hamilton Drive area.
There has so far been no consultation on the proposals which will seek to reduce the annual £800,000 spend by the Council on sustaining off peak bus services and those to remoter parts of the City.
The latest crisis reflects problems which started to develop when Labour took control of the Council in 2011.
They concentrated their efforts on scrapping the popular (with passengers) ftr service but failed to put anything in its place. Routes were chopped and changed with stability only achieved during the last 12 months.
Now even that seems to be under threat.
Bus service usage peaked at 12 million passenger journeys with the introduction of the ftr in 2006 before declining last year to 10.4 million.
Overall bus usage has held up with a gradual increase in the numbers using Park and Ride services which themselves peaked last year at 4.4 million.
Further increases are expected this year with the opening of the larger Askham Bar site and the new service from Poppleton Bar.
NB. The Council has announced it’s Christmas Park and Ride services.
A late night shopping service on all six Park&Ride routes will operate every Thursday, with the last bus leaving the city centre on all routes at around 9.30pm (for exact timings visit http://www.itravelyork.info/).
The first extended service will run from the 20 November ahead of the biggest Christmas market in York’s calendar – St Nicholas Fair starting on 27 November.
In addition to this, passengers will also be able to take advantage again of the, now traditional, FREE travel on Boxing Day on the three key P&R routes which will be operating.
Three Park & Ride services will operate on Boxing Day:
- Askham Bar (white line – route 3) – First bus at 7am from the site, last bus back from Tower Street at 6.42pm
- Designer Outlet (red line – route 7) – First bus at 7am from the site, last bus back from Rougier Street at 6.40pm
- Monks Cross (silver line – route 9) – First bus at 7am from the site, last bus back from Rougier Street at 6.43pm
All three services will operate at a 15 minute frequency throughout the day and will be FREE for all passengers (and will stop at all usual stops along the route).
To find out more about the offer or to find the best bus route through York, try out the council’s new i-Travel York online Journey Planner at http://www.itravelyork.info/
Changes to traffic priorities on Clarence Street
Clarence Street proposals – click to access
Following consultation with residents and businesses a new scheme to improve one of York’s key city centre bus routes is set to go to a Cabinet Member meeting for final approval.
The proposals include introducing a longer lane for vehicles turning left into Lord Mayor’s Walk from Clarence Street, so that straight-through/ right-turning traffic is not held up by queuing vehicles.
Traffic signals will be changed so that the left turn from Clarence Street into Lord Mayor’s Walk gets additional ‘green time’.
The scheme is supported through part of the £3.5 million Better Bus Area Fund (BBAF) awarded to the council from the Government’s Department for Transport in 2012.
The five-week consultation took place in September and October and asked for views on the proposed measures on Clarence Street to help improve the reliability of bus services on the approach to York city centre.
The findings of the consultation will now go before the Cabinet Member for Transport’s public Decision Session on Friday 21 November for final approval.
The improvements will help three of York’s five most frequent bus services, specifically routes 1, 5 and 6 which can experience some delays on Clarence Street, Gillygate and St Leonards Place.
Huntington Road chicanes on way back?
Huntington Road proposals click to access
City of York Council is proposing to reinstate chicanes (traffic calming measures) on Huntington Road, near the former Sessions printers, which were temporarily removed during the development of new homes in the area.
There was a requirement to remove the existing priority give-way measures (chicanes) during the development as they would have caused problems for construction traffic and access onto Huntington Road.
Temporary speed cushions were installed prior to the work commencing, as required under the planning conditions. However, in the long term it was always understood that the chicanes would be restored when most of the construction work was completed and suitable new positions had been agreed.
To help identify where the replacement chicanes would be best positioned, the new street layout was assessed and the proposals were put forward for local consultation with local residents, parish councillors, local businesses, relevant ward councillors and relevant road user organisations.
Following this consultation, it is recommended that the council reinstates the chicanes and cost of installing these will be met by the developer Ben Bailey Ltd.
Local Liberal Democrats have criticised the limited public consultationon plans to reinstate chicanes on Huntington Road.
The plans, which were announced today and are due to be decided on next week, would reinstate chicanes on Huntington Road, near the former Sessions printers. The chicanes were removed during the development of new homes in the area. However, only a limited public consultation took place on the plans despite the number of cars which use the road. Liberal Democrat councillors had requested that consultation letters be sent out to a much wider area than just those properties adjacent to the scheme.
Cllr Keith Orrell, Councillor for Huntington and New Earswick, commented: (more…)