More verges damaged as poor parking takes its toll

A combination of wet weather and poor parking practices has seen several verges in the area churned up.

Among the worst is on on St Stephens Road where part the public footpath has been uprooted making it virtually impassible for pedestrians

damage-to-public-footpath-caused-by-vehicular-access-to-29-st-stephens-road-cropped-1100-9th-feb-2017

Last year the York Council received a report on the problem. The report can be read by clicking here

Among other conclusions the report reveled that it costs £35 per sq mtr to repair damaged verges in the City.

We hope that the authorities will take prompt action to prevent damage of this sort and that proposals to provide more lay-bys in the area are implemented quickly

verge-danage

Empty garages costing York Council £25,500 a year in lost rent

489 registered on waiting list for garages in west York

Figures released by the York Council confirm that there is a high level of demand for Council garages in west York.

There are waiting lists at most blocks with the most popular being at (little) Green Lane where 24 residents are seeking a garage. Ironically this is a garage area which the Council have badly neglected. It suffers from an uneven forecourt, overgrown boundaries and occasional fly tipping.

One applicant for a garage in Dijon Avenue has been waiting since 2009!

Waiting list

Despite this the Council records that there are 67 garages currently vacant.

One garage in The Wandle has been unused since 2005!

empty-garages-jan-2017

Part of the problem has been a moratorium on the letting of garages in blocks which may be redeveloped.

This has affected 15 garages in Chaloners Road, which have been empty since 2014, while 21 garages in Newbury Avenue have suffered a similar fate with most empty since 2012. The development plans for Newbury Avenue are still in a state of flux so the Council is losing £500 a month in rent from that block alone.

Proposed new charges for garages have also been announced by the Council (see below)

garage-rents

We think that the Council should be much more proactive in trying to let empty garages. In many areas “on street” parking space is very limited and some residents resort to parking on verges. In turn this causes damage which is both unsightly and expensive to remedy.

The Council web site should be updated regularly with a list of garages that are empty, while Councillors should ensure that a list of garages, which are available, is displayed on local noticeboards

NB. The figures provided cover the Westfield, Acomb, Dringhouses and Holgate Wards. There are a similar number of Council garages on the east of the City

Parking to be banned on Holgate Park Drive

The York Council is advertising its intention to ban parking on Holgate Park Drive. The road provides an access to a development site which is required by Network Rail.

Currently heavy lorries are unable to use the road because of obstructions caused by commuter parking.

Parking for workers at nearby offices is inadequate and it is unclear what the knock on effects may be of additional restrictions.

An order is being advertised and any objections to the plan will be discussed in the spring.

holgate-park-drive

York car parks busy as plea made to free up more space

This week has seen the start of the build up to Christmas in York City Centre.

The most popular car park, at Castle, has been packed for most of the week…. & this despite the surface deteriorating until it is so uneven it represents a safety risk for some pedestrians.

The York Council still doesn’t widely advertise its “on line” car parking space availability web site, 4 years after it was “overlooked” when the local authority relocated its HQ.

On line site confirms parking space availability click to access

Street signs, which indicated the number of vacant spaces available, have also now disappeared, meaning tourists will add to congestion as they tour the City looking for spaces.

Reynards Garage site left empty

All in all then, a sad state of affairs.

One simple way of supplementing the availability of shoppers car parking spaces in the run up to Christmas would be to create a temporary car park at the former Reynard’s garage (Airspeed factory) site.

This site was cleared about a year ago and now stands tidy, but inaccessible, in a prime location on Piccadilly. The surface is in good condition and is certainly better than the surface at Castle..

All that is required is the installation of a ticket machine and Council taxpayers could look forward to a welcome financial bonus.

……and visitors to the City would find that there was a bit less pressure on parking spaces.

New proposals for development in Newbury Avenue

Westfield Councillors have given a guarded welcome to revised proposals which would see 8 bungalows built on the garage site on Newbury Avenue.

Lack of parking space on Windsor Garth is now a major issue.

The scheme replaces a controversial plan to build an apartment block there.

In a leaflet circulating to affected residents (below), the Councillors emphasise that a plan, being put before the Council’s Executive on 29th September, needs to be amended to include the funding of additional off-street parking spaces in the estate.

There are already acute parking problems in the area which have been exacerbated by the new Hob Stones development.

Page 1 nEWBURY aVE OPTIONS sEPT 2016 Page 2 nEWBURY aVE OPTIONS sEPT 2016

Extra car parking space in Foxwood to be discussed tomorrow (Wednesday)

Residents living in the Foxwood area are being consulted by the Residents Association on plans to provide additional car parking spaces in the Spurr Court, Bellhouse Way & Oldman Court area.

Four options for spending the estate improvement budget this year have been worked up by Council officials (see below)

The meeting to discuss the options is taking place on Wednesday 20th July starting at 7:00pm. The meeting will take place at the Foxwood Community Centre on Bellhouse Way.

Parking options on Foxwood

Doherty Walk parking area gets “go ahead”

Matrix surface protection planned for this grassed area

The badly damaged grassed area in Doherty Walk – which is used for car parking – will have matrix protection installed.

The move has been confirmed by the Council following strong representations from the local residents association. The proposal was also backed by Cllr Sheena Jackson and the housing departments local estate manager.

It has taken several months to secure funding for the £16,000 improvement, work on which is expected to start in the spring.

Matrix surface protection has been used extensively elsewhere in the Westfield Ward.. It has proved to be popular in locations such as St Stephens Square and Windsor Garth.

The process involves installing a plastic matrix on an area and allowing grass to grow through. It has the advantage that it continues to look like a natural grassed area, allowing safe recreational use. It continues to be mowed in the same way and water drains naturally reducing the risk of flooding. Vehicles can drive over the matrix surface without damaging the grass.

The Council is under pressure to provide similar improvements at other locations on the west of the City.

While the Doherty Walk changes are manly being funded from the housing account (rent payments), other areas may benefit from the recently revived “Ward Committee” funding pot.

Foxwood Residents Association to discuss lockers, parking etc on Wednesday

The Foxwood Residents Association meets on Wednesday (7:00pm, Community Centre) and will discuss the new lockers which are being provided for flats in the area.

The meeting – which is open to all residents living in the Foxwood area – will also hear how plans to provide matrix protection, for the grassed parking area in Doherty Walk, are progressing.

Design of lockers planned for Foxwood flats

Matrix surface protection planned for this grassed area

Amber warning for delivery drivers in York City centre

North Yorkshire Police, City of York Council and the York Retail Forum have joined forces to warn delivery drivers of the dangers that can be caused from driving and parking inappropriately in York’s city centre.

The new campaign follows a call for action from retailers and businesses after two incidents took place within a matter of weeks of each other, which saw historic buildings damaged by large delivery wagons, partly due to obstruction on the footstreets by other vehicles.

Yesterday the “Make it York” organisation – which is now responsible for “managing” the city centre – was criticised for proposing further restrictions on delivery times in Davygate which could make congestion worse. Parking arrangements in Kings Square had also been criticised.

Backed by the Retail Forum and Make It York, the new campaign issues a warning to delivery drivers to be careful and considerate of pedestrians, businesses and other vehicles.

If not, they could be fined.

North Yorkshire Police and the council already work side-by-side to monitor and take action against those who flout the law, but are stepping up enforcement action to increase safety in the city centre in the busy lead up to Christmas.

From December, drivers which are caught breaking the rules will be given a warning style ‘ticket’ [artwork attached] which will act as an advance warning. Should drivers re-offend they could be given a real Penalty Charge Notice by North Yorkshire Police or the council.

The campaign asks retailers and businesses to sign up to five key aims:

Kings Square parking problems yesterday

Support this initiative and feedback views and ideas to Make It York.
Communicate to their delivery providers about this initiative
Consider the size of vehicle servicing their business and consider future ways of limiting vehicles to less than 7.5 tonnes.
Ensuring vehicles do not block or damage pavements or roads and move on immediately after loading and unloading is complete.
Review the timings of deliveries to enhance the customer experience especially in the late afternoon and early evening period to encourage people to stay in the city longer.

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Behind closed doors York Council decision rules out new parking curbs near Gale Lane/Front Street junction

Dozens of traffic and parking decisions affecting whole City taken at secret session

Gale Lane Front Street click to enlarge

The Council has published a report reviewing parking arrangements near the Gale Lane/Front Street junction.

The report follows complaints about obstructions being caused to traffic generally, and bus services in particular, by vehicles parking on the carriageway and adjacent footpaths. Some of the problems were apparently being caused by delivery vans visiting the Gale Farm surgery.

The request for action were turned down at a secret meeting with the reports only being published publicly after decisions had already been taken.

Sadly this continues the practice of preventing residents from making representations, before decisions are taken, started in 2011. Despite public claims from the Council Leadership about their commitment to open government, this practise has still not been changed.

There is really no reason why agendas and reports can’t be published at least a week before a meeting takes place. This would give affected residents an opportunity to write to the Council giving their views, if they chose to.

Changes to traffic arrangements in every ward in the City were considered by the same meeting (and not pre publicised).

Click the links below for details
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