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12
Sept
£630,000 resurfacing of Ripon Market Square roads set to be approved
North Yorkshire Council is tomorrow expected to approve spending £630,000 on resurfacing the roads around Ripon’s historic Market Square.
The carriageways were transformed from asphalt to a combination of stone and tegula blocks two decades ago with funding from the National Lottery.
Awarded on 22 September 1999, the council was expected to maintain this surfacing for 25 years, which expires this month.
Since then, the carriageways have required frequent repairs due to recurring damage. This has led to some damaged areas being covered with asphalt, resulting in a patchwork of materials on the carriageways.
Described as “untidy” and “an eyesore” in a public consultation, North Yorkshire Council put forward proposals last year to replace the surface of the road with asphalt in line with surrounding roads.
The blocks in the central Market Square will remain unaffected and the proposals would maintain the current composition of blocks in the taxi rank and loading bays.
Ripon market place
As part of the consultation, key stakeholders such as Ripon Civic Society, Ripon BID and Ripon Together were consulted and a second consultation was opened to Ripon businesses and residents.
The consultation generated some objections, which included concerns that asphalt would harm the history and character of Market Square and that the smoother surface would encourage drivers to go faster.
One response also said the noisy tegula blocks provided useful audio cues for visually impaired and blind people.
Work is expected to last one to two months and concerns were raised in the public consultation of the impact it would have if the works were carried out in peak retail periods such as November and December in the run-up to Christmas.
A report to the council's environment executive, which recommends approving the work and appointing a contractor, says:
The work will be funded through the council's annual capital maintenance programme in the financial year 2024/25 and currently has a combined approved budget £830,000. This is split across three named schemes in the capital programme which are U2392 Duck Hill, Ripon (£100,000), C423 Kirkgate, Ripon (£100,000) and C422 Market Place R&R (£630,000).
Work will be delivered in phases but a starting date is not yet known.
A traffic management phasing strategy will ensure that at least one side of the Market Square remains open at all times.
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