Police begin clampdown on uninsured drivers in North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire Police began a week-long blitz today on motorists driving without insurance.

Officers on patrol will use automatic number plate recognition and in-car technology to find offenders.

The activity is part of the national police campaign Op Drive Insured.

A North Yorkshire Police statement today said:

“In a three-hour window in the York area, our officers have already seized four vehicles and arrested one uninsured driver on suspicion of drug driving.

“At a time when austerity is high, vehicle insurance is not a cut back you can afford to make.”

You can check if your vehicle is insured here.

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Three people seriously injured in head-on crash on Harrogate bypass

Three people have been treated in hospital for serious injuries after a two-vehicle head-on collision on the Harrogate bypass.

Firefighters had to extract two people from one of the cars involved in the collision, which occurred on the A658 at yesterday afternoon.

The incident led to long tailbacks between Harrogate and Knaresborough.

In a statement today, North Yorkshire Police said:

“North Yorkshire Police was called to the scene of a serious two-vehicle head-on collision on Harrogate by-pass at around 3.20pm on Monday, 20 November.

“North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service also attended the scene, sending two appliances from Harrogate. Firefighters extracted two people from one of the cars involved in the collision.

“Three people were taken to hospital by Yorkshire Ambulance Service for treatment to serious injuries.

“Road closures were put in place in the immediate area while emergency crews attended the scene and the area was made safe.”

The statement added no arrests have been made and an investigation into the cause of the collision is “ongoing”.

Witnesses are urged to contact North Yorkshire Police on 101, quoting reference 12230220890.

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Harrogate street closure: police investigation ‘ongoing’

North Yorkshire Police has said the closure of a street in Harrogate town centre on Friday night is part of an “ongoing investigation”.

Back Cheltenham Mount was cordoned off for several hours on Friday afternoon and evening.

The closure led to speculation about the nature of the incident but the force had not disclosed any information until today.

Officers also sealed off the steps on Cheltenham Mount and King’s Road that cut across Back Cheltenham Mount.

The steps starting on King’s Road.

A police officer on patrol on Back Cheltenham Mount.

In response to a media enquiry from the Stray Ferret, a North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said this morning:

“A police cordon was put in place in Harrogate town centre as part of an ongoing investigation.

“Enquiries are at an early stage, and a further update will be provided when possible.”

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‘Operational challenges’ delay major Harrogate roadworks

The completion of seven weeks of roadworks in Harrogate town centre has been delayed, Northern Gas Networks has said.

The company has been replacing metal pipes with plastic pipes on some of the main routes, including Parliament Street, King’s Road and Cold Bath Road.

The project was due to end yesterday but Mark Mawhood, operations manager for Northern Gas Networks, said:

“I can confirm that the extensive work taking place in Harrogate will be completed this week.

“We will however need to return to complete a small section of the network, which due to some operational challenges could not be completed in the timeframe. The planning team is currently working on dates for when this work will be caried out and we will then notify the public and media once this is scheduled.

“We apologise for inconvenience caused during these works, and we thank the public for their patience during this large-scale scheme.”

The roadworks are the second phase of delayed works  that were “paused” a year ago.

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Starbeck tap dancers take part in world record bid

Forty dancers from Starbeck took part in a bid to break the world record yesterday for the largest number of people to perform the same tap routine at multiple venues simultaneously.

Children and adults from Summerbell Dance Academy took to the floor of the Victoria suite at the Crown Hotel in Harrogate as part of BBC Children in Need’s fundraising activities.

The youngest tapper was aged two and the oldest was 86.

They performed a routine they had been learning since September to Wham!’s Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.

The figures are being collated today to see whether the tapathon world record of 7,596 was beaten.

Regardless of whether the target was achieved, the local dancers managed to raise £380 for Children in Need.

Performing their routine at the Crown Hotel.

Jennie Summerbell, the principal of Summerbell Dance Academy, said:

“It was a national initiative but it gave us a challenge and something to aim for.”

Summerbell Dance Academy, which is based at St Andrew’s church hall in Starbeck, has 200 students.

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Opening date for £17.5m Knaresborough leisure centre revealed

Knaresborough’s new £17.5 million leisure and wellness centre will open on December 11.

The centre includes a six-lane 25-metre pool, a leisure pool with flume and a 60-station fitness suite.

There is also a studio for group fitness classes, a bespoke group cycling studio, sauna and steam rooms, a café and an outdoor children’s play area.

The centre has been developed next to the old Knaresborough Pool, which was built in 1990 and last refurbished 20 years ago.

Work on the exterior of the site.

The changing room area.

Cllr Simon Myers, North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for culture and leisure, said:

“I am delighted that we have an opening date for this exciting new leisure provision for Knaresborough – it’s a perfect Christmas gift for the town.

“The local community had long outgrown the old pool – there was a call for fitness provision as well as spaces for classes and post workout relaxation spaces.

“By shifting the service offer from conventional swimming pool provision to a community health and wellbeing service we aim to help people move more, live well, feel great and reduce the proportion of the population that is physically inactive.”

The project is part of a wider £47.9 million investment in leisure provision, including the recently completed refurbishment of Harrogate Leisure and Wellness Centre and the Jack Laugher Leisure and Wellness Centre in Ripon.

All the centres are managed day-to-day by Brimhams Active, the council’s health and wellbeing company.

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Campaigners step-up fight against Allerton asphalt plant

More than 1,000 residents have now objected to plans to build an asphalt plant next to the Allerton waste incinerator, between Knaresborough and Boroughbridge.

Andrew Jones, the Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, joined about 100 campaigners fighting the proposal at Marton cum Grafton village hall on Saturday.

Mr Jones told the meeting organised by Communities Against Toxins he too was against the proposal, adding:

“The reasons are two-fold and to do with both head and heart. The heart brings the community together to show this is not welcome, and the head tells you that the dangers of pollution – both air pollution and water pollution – are major risks.

“Campaigners have done an incredible job marshalling the arguments and I hope when councillors come to consider the application they act on these concerns and turn the application down.

“This is the wrong idea in the wrong location.”

Campaign organiser Michael Emsley (left) talks to Andrew Jones.

 

Campaigners at the meeting.

Tynedale Roadstone Ltd plans to build the asphalt plant at the Allerton Waste Recovery Park.

A 22.5-metre exhaust stack would emit fumes containing carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and lead.

The group fears people living within a three-to-nine kilometre radius of the site would be affected by potentially harmful pollutants.

Communities Against Toxins organiser Michael Emsley wants to put pressure on North Yorkshire Council to scrutinise the proposal’s environmental impacts assessment.

He said:

“We do not believe this plant should be built in this location and we will continue to do all that we can to fight it.

“We will not stop. We will make sure that when North Yorkshire Council sit down to make its decision, they are in no doubt as to what the local communities think and that our concerns regarding the EIA have been addressed.”

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Police silent on Harrogate street closure

North Yorkshire Police has remained silent on why it closed a Harrogate town centre street yesterday.

Cordons were placed at either end of Back Cheltenham Mount on Friday, November 17.

Police also sealed off the steps on Cheltenham Mount and Kings Road that cut through Back Cheltenham Mount.

The steps on Kings Road

 

Officers at the scene would only say they were investigating a crime.

Residents were advised to remain indoors.

The Stray Ferret asked North Yorkshire Police about the incident last night but has not received a response, and the force has yet to publish any information.

We will give more details when they are available.

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Junction 47 upgrade on A1(M) cost £3.1m above budget

The junction 47 upgrade on the A1(M) near Knaresborough cost £3.1 million more than budgeted, it has finally been revealed.

North Yorkshire Council said this week the scheme, which was forecast to cost £7.7 million, actually cost £10.8 million.

The project finished in April last year, seven months later than planned.

North Yorkshire County Council, which was abolished on April 1 this year, said last year costs had increased to £10m.

But no figure had been given since despite requests from the Stray Ferret. The council said this was due to ongoing discussions with contractors over the final amount.

But following our latest enquiry, Cllr Keane Duncan, North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for highways and transport, said:

“The final costs are £10.8 million. This includes the additional costs for delays which were caused by the discovery of the protected great crested newts, as they legally had to be relocated.

“We also experienced poor ground conditions on the southbound slip road, and during the coronavirus pandemic operatives had to comply with strict health and safety guidance which extended the timescale.”

He added:

“The Junction 47 upgrade has proved hugely successful, meeting the high traffic volumes without delays at peak times including during the Great Yorkshire Show.

“It was voted the winner of the best large projects award at the CIHT Yorkshire andHumber awards in October 2022.”

A gathering of officials and councillors to mark the upgrade of the junction last year.

Three of the four slip roads onto and off the roundabout were widened to increase capacity.

Traffic signals were installed on the roundabout to improve traffic flow and lights were added to the T-junction between the A168 and the A59, a short distance from junction 47 on the York side, to benefit drivers turning onto the A59 and to improve safety.

To the west of junction 47, between the A1 and the Flaxby roundabout, a lane was added for traffic travelling east, so there are now two lanes in each direction between those two roundabouts.

Tinsel tractor run coming to Ripon and Boroughbridge

A tinsel tractor run is to be held around Ripon and Boroughbridge on December 2.

Up to 30 festively-decorated tractors will depart from garden centre F Tate & Sons on Studley Road, near Ripon, at about 2.30pm.

The brightly lit vehicles will then follow a 21-mile route that passes through Bishop Monkton, Roecliffe, Boroughbridge and Skelton-on-Ure before finishing in Ripon Market Place at about 5.30pm.

Simon Dickinson, who organises the Nidderdale Charity Tractor Run each year, decided to stage the event to raise money for Harrogate-based Yorkshire Cancer Research.

Mr Dickinson, a window cleaner who grew up in Littlethorpe and now lives in Northallerton, said he wanted to raise money to help people affected by cancer and had been inspired by tinsel tractor runs held overseas.

He added he had been amazed by the response since the event was announced last night. Fifteen tractor drivers have already signed up.

Mr Dickinson, who is a member of West Yorkshire Vintage Tractor & Engine Club, added:

“I want to get it off the ground this year and then do it year after year.”

Tractor drivers pay £15 to enter and collections will be held at key points along the route.

The Nidderdale tractor run, which Mr Dickinson founded last year, attracted 55 vehicles and raised almost £2,000 this year. Next year’s event will be on June 30.

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