Some progress with public service standard improvements in west York

We were pleased to see that some public service in the Westfield area have improved over the last 7 days.

The Council have responded promptly to reports of problems with litter and fly tipping.

Most amenity areas have now had a, long overdue, visit from the mower although the length of the cuttings has itself caused a problem. They will look much tidier if they get a scheduled second cut within the next 3 weeks.

Elsewhere, several of the blocked drainage channels on the Chapelfields estate have been cleaned. These were mainly located on the inside of the traffic build outs.

They need to be swept regularly to avoid a build up of detritus and weeds.

*Before and after. Drainage gullies cleared.*

*Some progress in cleaning channels on Barkston Avenue but but warning post will need to be replaced.*

The Front Street shopping area was looking tidier yesterday.

We’re still waiting to learn of the results of the survey into the future of the area. An improvement budget of £1/2 million has been promised.

However, it is good to see that the back lane between Front Street and Beaconsfield Street is currently largely free of weeds and litter.

*Beaconsfield Street back lane and Front Street*

One remaining issue remains the reliability of the waste collection service. The Council says that it has recruited two new drivers and that this should ease the problem in future.

Time will tell.

Blocked gulleys blamed for recent flooding in east York

We warned about false economies 4 years ago. click to access

A report into flash flooding in York has blamed it partly on lack of gulley cleaning.

This will come as little surprise to readers of these pages.

We said in 2012, when the then Labour controlled Council decided to end routine gully cleaning, that it was a false economy.

So it has proved to be.

Credit the present Council who have acted to increase the cleaning regime but not quickly enough to prevent flooding in some areas in June.

The Council report reveals that as many as 50% of drains that have been inspected have been found to be blocked. A number of Yorkshire Water maintained drainage and sewer pipes are also blocked.

£125k in capital funding, for “drainage hotspots”, has been made available by the Council.

Gulley cleaning – extent of cuts revealed.

Labour run York Council has confirmed that it has reduced by nearly half the number of times that drainage gulleys are cleaned in the City.

In 2010/11, the last year of Liberal Democrat control of the council, there were 38,000 gulley cleans.

In 2013/14, after cuts by Labour in 2012, this was reduced to 20,664.

The reduction has been blamed for increasing problems with so-called ponding and minor flooding on some local streets.

Labour has cut the budget for gulley cleaning by £100,000 or 40% since coming to power, and reduced frontline staff.
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