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Arriva Yorkshire first to secure five star Eco rating

Arriva Yorkshire has become the first bus operator in England to secure a five star Eco Stars rating after signing up to City of York Council’s York Eco Stars fleet recognition scheme.

 

Arriva bus

Arriva has signed up 15 of their vehicles that operate in the York area to the scheme. This means that 45 operators are now part of the scheme with nearly 3000 vehicles signed up and individually assessed.

The ECO Stars (Efficient and Cleaner Operations) Fleet Recognition Scheme helps York’s fleet operators gain recognition for their commitment to improving efficiency, reducing fuel consumption and reducing emissions – all helping to improve local air quality.

The scheme awards each member a star rating based on an assessment of how ‘clean’ their vehicle fleet is and how they demonstrate good practice in key areas of:

  • · Fuel management
  • · Developing driver skills
  • · Vehicle specification and maintenance
  • · Use of IT support systems
  • · Fleet performance monitoring

 

Key to the ECO Stars scheme is the bespoke ‘road map’, an action plan developed for each new member to help them take steps to improve their star rating. The ‘road map’ will highlight any issues and advise members on how to combat them, such as alternative fuel or technology that is available.
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York first in Yorkshire to get rapid car charging points

York is the first city in Yorkshire to  run rapid car charging points. The rapid charging points can fill a car from flat to 80 per cent charged in just 20 minutes using high power 50kW chargers.

Charging points

Charging points

The rapid chargers will work by using either a swipe card or by downloading a free app, both of which are available from  ‘Charge Your Car’. The charging points are located at the Sports Village and Poppleton Bar (outside electric bus operating hours). They will also support the use of electric buses and taxis in the city.
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Tour de France: First bus service changes and camping advice video for visitors

With millions expected to line the route of the Tour de France this weekend, First is putting in place the final preparations for the local bus and Park&Ride network around York on Sunday 6 July.

Bus stuck during previous TdF race

Bus stuck during previous TdF race

Due to road closures some routes will also need to be diverted or altered and customers are encouraged to plan well ahead by visiting firstgroup.com/tourdefrance for all the details. Details of changes to routes, stops and services can also be seen around the city centre on notices at bus stops and information displayed on real time screens.

As a result of the route taken by the race, First’s cross-city services will be split and some will be diverted with buses starting and finishing at one of three bus hubs, Fishergate, Hungate & the Station.

First has worked closely with City of York Council to also provide more Park & Ride journeys with services starting from 6am – three and a half hours earlier than on a normal Sunday. In addition, Askham Bar, Grimston Bar and Rawcliffe Bar Park & Ride sites will open from 4am to allow people to arrive early.

Park&Ride sites provide services every 10 minutes with great value fares (returns costing £2.70 from the terminal to the city centre, with up to 2 children travelling free with each adult). More information is available yorkparkandride.co.uk. Due to the route taken by the race the Poppleton Bar Park&Ride will not be operating on Sunday 6th July..

First is also providing extra buses across the York network on existing routes providing more capacity and allowing for slightly longer journeys in some cases to take into account diversions and additional road traffic. Many services will also start earlier on the morning of Sunday 6 July to accommodate the extra demand.

As well as additional driving roles, First staff will be working across the network and behind the scenes to ensure the event is a success. First is also preparing spare buses ready at key locations across Yorkshire to meet any other transport requirements.

Tour de France camping

Additional late evening services will operate on the Monks Cross Park & Ride on Friday 4th July to cater for the ‘Grand Departy’ concert at Huntington Stadium. The last bus back to the City will depart from Monks Cross Park & Ride site at 11.30pm. Services will run as normal on Saturday 5 July and Monday 7th July.

Customers are encouraged to keep in touch with travel updates over the weekend by using twitter on @YorkTravel

Will Pearson, Business Manager of First in York added: The Tour de France, Grand Depart is a fabulous opportunity to showcase Yorkshire and we’ve worked closely with partners including City of York Council to support our existing bus network and introduce extra services to help transport existing and new customers. There will be some disruption to the bus network but by planning ahead customers can find out what alternatives are available and ensure they enjoy this

Outdoor theatre show inspired by everyday stories of cycling to tour Yorkshire this summer

 Bike Story

Yorkshire theatre company 509 Arts has announced the premier in York and tour dates for its free performances of Bike Story, a brand new outdoor theatre production based on stories from the public about cycling.

The show, commissioned by Yorkshire Festival 2014 and presented in association with City of York Council, will tour festivals and town centres throughout Yorkshire. During the run up to this year’s Grand Départ, it will be staged in venues including Rowntree Park in York, Hull, Doncaster, Leeds, Grassington, Saltaire, Ilkley, Harrogate, Halifax and Hebden Bridge and is free to the public.

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Be part of it and take home a piece of Yorkshire!

As part of City of York Council’s vibrant arts and cultural festival, York: Be part of it, a York art gallery is encouraging visitors to the Tour de France to take home a visual reminder of Yorkshire

 

sacred transportAs part of City of York Council’s vibrant arts and cultural festival, York: Be part of it, a York art gallery is encouraging visitors to the Tour de France to take home a visual reminder of Yorkshire to be enjoyed in the home every day, and inspire a return visit.

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North Yorkshire Police joins forces with residents to spring clean Bell Farm

North Yorkshire Police is joining forces with City of York Council, Bell Farm Management committee and the North Yorkshire and York Community Payback Team to spring clean

Residents are invited to come and take part in a litter pick in the Bull Ring and South Beck areas on 25th May as part of the Smarter York spring clean scheme.

For more information please visit www.york.gov.uk/smarteryork or follow@SmarterYork on Twitter.

Residents can nominate an area they think is in need of a spring clean by calling 01904 551551 or emailing ycc@york.gov.uk or download the Smarter York mobile phone application from all app stores.

Litter pickers, refuse sacks and high visibility vests are available to volunteers on the day.

Big increase proposed in number of mobile speed cameras in North Yorkshire

It is good to see the new Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) publishing on line the details of her decision meetings including the background papers (http://tinyurl.com/PCC-meeting-28th-Nov-2012). The meetings, the first of which takes place in Knaresborough tomorrow, will apparently be open for residents to attend.

Whether residents will be able to make representations at the meetings remains to be seen, although hopefully the system will allow in future for emailed comments to be sent in advance of any decisions being taken.

The secretive City of York Council could take a leaf out of the Commissioners book.

One of the first decisions the PCC will take concerns the use of mobile speed (safety) cameras. http://tinyurl.com/Speed-cameras-North-Yorkshire. The cameras were introduced about 18 months ago following representation from the then LibDem controlled Council. The aim was to address issues at known accident black spots. The likely location of the cameras were announced on the Police web site 7 days in advance.

The trial has been a success with Police officers reporting “a reduction in collisions at identified sites where excess or inappropriate speed was considered to be a contributory factor”

Camera operators noted “a significant change in driver behaviour when revisiting sites, this is borne out by a reduction in high and medium speed offences at a number of locations”

Now the Chief Constable is recommending that the number of mobile speed cameras be increased to three with a significant increase in operational and backroom staffing.

Given the size of North Yorkshire, having two vans might have been understandable but the report quotes anticipated revenue from fines which will alarm some.

o Year 1 £225k

o Year 2 £515k

o Year 3 £447k
The income would be spent on road safety schemes but nevertheless the original objective of the project (to provide a deterrent to ultra speeders) is in danger of being lost.

It is unclear whether the Police will continue to publish in advance details of the sites that they will be monitoring.

It raises once again the prospect of the cameras being used in York to enforce Labour’s ridiculous City-wide 20 mph speed limit. After all, could a politically elected Police Commissioner – in the run up to a General Election – resist pressure to enforce all speed limits in the area?

Other items on the PCCs agenda include:

• Approval to commence ordering of vehicles for the 2013/14 Transport Capital Rolling Programme prior to budget setting

• Introduction of a computer triage system to monitor Registered Sex Offenders

• Employment Monitoring and Diversity Oversight Document

• Service Standards – Q2 2012/13

• Strategic Policing Requirement

• Performance report

Tomorrow is Yorkshire Day 2012 (1 August)

Several events have been arranged to celebrate Yorkshire Day.

Yorkshire Ridings Society will be processing around the Bar Walls proudly boasting a Yorkshire flag before performing the Declarations of Integrity in modern and olden dialect, ending on the cobbles at Newgate Market.

The city centre will be decked out in bunting and Yorkshire flags. A Yorkshire Day banner will also be hung for visitors and residents to see at Newgate Market, where there will be a Yorkshire Day market full of local traders with Yorkshire goods and produce, including additional stalls from the Farmers’ Market.

The Civic party will be attending the annual Civic gathering, which will this year be held in Scarborough and will include a procession with sword and mace bearers.

The Mansion House will be flying the Yorkshire Day flag on this special day.

Other events celebrating Yorkshire Day across the city include:

• York’s Chocolate Story selling special Yorkshire chocolates for the day in flavours of Yorkshire blue; white chocolate and rhubarb; tea and fruitcake; and Wensleydale cheese and apple.
• Hinchliffe’s Farm Shop is celebrating Yorkshire Day with a giant, York Minster shaped pork pie which will be unveiled at 2.30pm on the steps of York Minster.
• The York Brewery is doing a Real Ale Trail based around Yorkshire beers in their pubs.
• The North Yorkshire Moors Railway is running a special lunchtime Pullman service runs in celebration of Yorkshire Day on 1st August, which departs from Grosmont at 1.30pm.

Yorkshire in bloom judges in York today

On Wednesday 11 July the Yorkshire in Bloom Judges arrive to assess the city as part of the RHS Britain in Bloom competition.

Yorkshire in Bloom Judges Chris Beard and David Elcock will tour the city to decide whether York meets the Gold standard in terms of floral displays, green spaces, the look of our local neighbourhoods and street environment as well as levels of community involvement in ongoing plans.

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North Yorkshire Police Launch New Crime Tracking Data

For the first time people in North Yorkshire and the City of York will be able to track online what happened after a crime was committed in their neighbourhood, with the introduction of new data published on the government’s crime mapping website today. Click http://www.police.uk/

In the next stage of development of the groundbreaking website Police.uk, residents will not only be able to access street level crime data but also see what action the local police have taken as a result.

The site will also start to show whether offenders went to court, increasing transparency in the criminal justice system.

The additions to the site come after the public showed a huge appetite for more information on every aspect of crime in their area, with more than 47 million visits on Police.uk since it launched in January 2011.

Police.uk has already undergone a series of innovative updates, providing the public with more criminal justice information than ever before. This includes mapping crimes at points of interest including supermarkets and nightclubs, introducing new crime categories such as shoplifting and increasing accuracy by placing crimes to within eight postcodes instead of 12. (more…)