Road and footpath condition in York – questions asked

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

The York Council has been asked to reveal how many reports of problems with defective roads and footpaths it is receiving each month. The request for the publication of information comes in the wake of a Freedom of Information response which revealed that the Council believed that “5% of roads in the City require resurfacing”.

The new Council announced that it was increasing the amount available for maintenance by around £1 million this year.  So far no list of streets that might benefit has been published.

The background to the initiative is the absence of performance information which should be (but isn’t)  routinely published by the Council. Even scrutiny committees seem reluctant to monitor the number of defects that are being reported and the length of time taken to address issues.

This applies across a wide range of public services in the City.

What is clear is that the cuts on highways expenditure agreed by the last Labour Council have had a major impact on service quality.

Success for Hamilton Drive West resurfacing campaign

Repair work starts on 6th October

Hamilton Drive - sections to be resurfaced click

Hamilton Drive – sections to be resurfaced click

Following many months of complaining, the Council has agreed to resurface the section of Hamilton Drive West between Green Lane and Lady Hamilton Gardens.

Originally this section had not been scheduled for resurfacing before 2016.

However Andrew Waller pointed out that the surface had deteriorated to the point where one more severe winter would see he road crumble and repair costs spiral..

The ruts represent a hazard for both pedestrians and cyclists while motorists have complained about the ever deepening potholes.

The Mattison Way to Campbell Avenue section of the road will also receive attention

 

 

 

 

 

Labour highways maintenance scam revealed.

Labour are planning a “surprise” announcement next month, when they will “reveal” that they will spend an additional £2 million on highways resurfacing during the next financial year.

Highways expenditure Click to enlarge

Highways expenditure Click to enlarge

The announcement will be in response to the pressure, put on them by residents and the Liberal Democrats, who have criticised the cuts made in road and footpath repairs budgets over the last 2 years.

In total, £4 million has been cut from the repairs budget in an attempt to find funding for schemes like the repaving of Kings Square and the, largely unnecessary, £1 million street lamppost replacement programme.

Now Labour – for one year only – hope to return the budget to the £5.5 million level that they inherited from the last LibDem administration.

However, they intend to pay for the programme by borrowing more money. Already residents are facing over £1 million a year extra in interest payments – making Council Tax rises inevitable.

The figures also reveal that investment on de-icing roads and footpaths has fallen by more than half since Labour took over. Fortunately we have – so far – had a mild winter but we may not be so lucky in future years.

We hope that roads like Vesper Drive and footpaths like those on Huntsman’s Walk will now get, long overdue, resurfacing.

Highways maintenance cuts for York revealed.

The Council has revealed how it plans to spend £2.6 million on highways and footpath resurfacing over the next financial year.

road works

The provisional expenditure is down on the £3.4 million being invested during the current year.

That in turn was well down on the budget agreed by the last Liberal Democrat administration which held power until 2011 and which regularly invested over £5 million a year in the highways network.

Carriageway surfaces are now breaking up and the repairs backlog is growing.

In the Westfield ward footpaths in parts of three streets are due to receive attention next year. Roads affected are Cornlands Road, Wetherby Road, and Green Lane. However there are no plans to resurface any roads (carriageways) in the area.

Behind closed doors logo

A full list of streets where repairs are planned can be downloaded by clicking here

A final Council highways budget for next year will be announced in March.

The decision, on which roads to resurface, was taken in another “behind closed doors” meeting. There was no consultation with residents on the options.