A Boroughbridge resident has called on North Yorkshire Council to make “urgent” improvements to a local road.
The man, who wished to remain anonymous, lives on Roecliffe Lane and told the Stray Ferret he has spent the last year campaigning to have the road resurfaced.
He said he and other local residents have issued “over a decade of complaints” to the council to resurface the road, as well as requested traffic-calming measures to make it safer, but are yet to see anything come to fruition.
Following a recent petition organised by the man and signed by Roecliffe Lane residents, he said the same recurring issues became “abundantly clear”:
“Several residents’ houses along the road shake whenever HGVs, buses, and often even cars, drive over the potholes next to them.
“This is our personal number-one issue and has at times caused deep regret moving to the street.
“We have had to endure over a year of it so far since moving in, our bed shaking most mornings when HGVs start driving the road in the early hours, doors juddering in frames, our baby’s rooms’ wardrobe rattling, the timber frame of the house creaking and more.
“Even people that visit notice, because the kitchen floor vibrates and the glasses in the cupboard clink. The council have been made aware of this multiple times.
“Several residents also commented about needing to repair their vehicles and bicycles from broken suspension and burst tyres. An elderly lady I spoke to had also fallen off her bike from a pothole.”
The noise from traffic can also be alarmingly loud and frequent, and speeding is a big issue along the road, he added.
The road was in ‘poor’ condition back in 2013. Pic: fixmystreet.
Now, he is proposing a “resident-first rethink”. He said:
“What worked for it when it was originally built is clearly not working for its residents now with increased housing, traffic and HGVs.
“It needs resurfacing urgently. It needs traffic-calming measures putting in place to reduce the thousands of noisy vehicles per day, and mitigations for the frequent HGVs.”
He also suggested the council implement new speeding enforcements to “protect the residents and their children from the up-to-81mph speeding vehicles.”
Roecliffe Lane in 2023.
‘Resurfacing is in our programme’
In response to the concerns raised, Melissa Burnham, highways area manager for North Yorkshire Council, told the Stray Ferret:
“Resurfacing of Roecliffe Lane is included in our programme for 2024/25. Once dates are confirmed, we will ensure the local community are aware.
“The local Highways team are also aware of the concerns raised and are liaising with North Yorkshire Police regarding enforcement.”
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Council removes anti-speeding scarecrows in Nidd for ‘safety reasons’
North Yorkshire Council has removed several scarecrows created as part of an anti-speeding campaign in a village between Harrogate and Knaresborough.
Residents in Nidd put up about 16 scarecrows near the B6165 and Town Street this month as part of a campaign to reduce the speed limit after two recent fatal accidents.
Several were designed to look like police officers and some contained messages.
But North Yorkshire Council removed the ones immediately alongside the highways last week. Several on private land remain.
A council spokesperson said:
“Our highways team contacted festival organisers on Thursday requesting that scarecrows near the road were removed ahead of Storm Babet.
“They were not able to get hold of the organisers so officers were sent to remove scarecrows close to the road due to safety reasons.
“The scarecrows are being kept safe at the highways depot for collection. The organisers and parish council were informed of this.”
Several scarecrows have high visability jackets.
A police officer scarecrow.
The activists’ creative scarecrow stunt has divided opinion in Nidd.
Some villagers embraced the move to raise awareness of the campaign to reduce the speed limit from 40mph to 30mph.
The B6165, which links Ripley and Knaresborough, has some sharp, narrow bends in Nidd, especially near Nidd Hall.
Villager and co-organiser Jayne Brown said the scarecrow festival served its purpose:
“It definitely had an big impact on reducing the speed and making the lives of the people in the village safer.”
Ms Brown added that less than 36 hours after the scarecrows were removed a car crashed into a wall.
But others thought the stunt was ill-advised.
The clerk of Nidd Parish Council, who asked not to be named, said although it sympathised with the cause it did not think the methods were appropriate.
The clerk reiterated her previous comment, which said:
“We are concerned that any distractions to drivers as they approach, what we all agree is a dangerous bend, is not sensible.”
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