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13
May
Petition calling on council to speed up Knaresborough landslip repairs hits target overnight
A petition calling on North Yorkshire Council to prioritise repairs to a collapsed walkway in Knaresborough has reached its target in less than 24 hours.
Viaduct Terrace on Waterside collapsed into the River Nidd on Sunday, February 8, following a prolonged wet spell.
No one was harmed, but because the walkway is almost directly beneath the viaduct that carries trains between York and Harrogate trains were signifcantly disrupted.
The council has provided little information since, which prompted councillor Matt Walker, a Liberal Democrat who represents Knaresborough West, to seek updates on behalf of residents.
Despite being told work would start this summer, Cllr Walker recently shared a response from North Yorkshire Council, which revealed it is now unlikely to begin until 2027 unless “ground conditions prove favourable”.
Frustrated, Cllr Walker and fellow Lib Dem councillor Hannah Gostlow, who represents Knaresborough East, last night (May 12) launched a petition calling on the council to take immediate action.
The petition, which has already reached its 500-signature target, urges the authority to treat the repair work as a priority and to begin "meaningful stabilisation works before the onset of winter weather”.
It says the current state of Viaduct Terrace, which is situated on the tourist haven Waterside, poses a risk to public safety and could threaten the local economy. It adds:
As a primary driver of the region’s visitor economy, the derelict state of the terrace sends a ‘closed for business’ messaged to tourists.
Early intervention is the only fiscally responsible path. Allowing the damage to worsen over winter will exponentially increase the cost to North Yorkshire taxpayers.
Pedestrian walkway Viaduct Terrace collapsed into the River Nidd. Credit: Cllr Matt Walker
‘The people of Knaresborough will not sit by’
Responding to the petition’s overnight success, Cllr Walker this morning told the Stray Ferret:
Reaching over 500 signatures in less than 24 hours sends an unmistakable message: the people of Knaresborough will not sit by while our town’s most iconic landmark is left to crumble.
Cllr Walker said the “overwhelming surge of support” for the campaign means councillors can now deliver the petition to the council.
Usually, petitions like this would be considered at an area constituency committee meeting. The next Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee meeting is scheduled for June 4, but Cllr Walker isn't willing to wait until then:
The situation is far too urgent to wait for the next scheduled meeting. We will be raising this directly with the chief executive and leader of North Yorkshire Council this week to demand immediate action.
The community is rightly fed up with excuses. We have the signatures, we have the strength of feeling and now we need the council to provide a firm start date for these repairs before the winter weather turns this landslip into a catastrophe for our town.
North Yorkshire Council has stayed relatively tight-lipped on the situation since it happened.
The Stray Ferret put a number of questions to the authority after the landslip, which you can read about by clicking here.
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