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20
Apr
Petition to extend pedestrian-only hours on Ripon street nears target
A petition calling on North Yorkshire Council to extend pedestrian-only hours on a Ripon street is nearing its target.
The Stray Ferret last month revealed a petition has been set up calling on North Yorkshire Council to press ahead with plans to extend pedestrian-only hours on Kirkgate.
It came after Ripon City Council last year requested the council launch a formal consultation on the move, which would effectively ban cars on Kirkgate between 10am and 5pm, or until 9pm between March 31 and September 30, but little progress had been made.
Ripon resident and supporter of the Kirkgate campaign David Ingham told the Stray Ferret the petition has now amassed more than 400 signatures – both online and on paper versions – and is approaching its 500-signature target.
It has been backed by Kirkgate business, plus local residents and councillors.
Once the petition reaches 500 signatures, Mr Ingham said it will be eligible to be considered by members of North Yorkshire Council’s Skipton and Ripon area constituency committee.
The petition reiterates the city council's plans to pedestrianise the street between 10am and 5pm, or until 9pm during the summer months, by installing "timed, automatic rising bollards".
It adds Kirkgate “should be a place where people feel safe to walk, shop and spend time – supporting local businesses and strengthening our city”.
Mr Ingham previously told the Stray Ferret:
The road is supposed to be partly pedestrianised and for access only, but the access is abused, with vehicles left parked half on pavements, causing dangers for people with mobility problems as well as for families with pushchairs.
It often creates an eyesore of what should be the most picturesque and is the most photographed road in the city.
The petition, which can be signed online by clicking here, calls on North Yorkshire Council to “launch the consultation. Back Kirkgate. Put people first”.
The issue has been ongoing for some time now. Ripon City Council requested North Yorkshire Council launch the consultation in March last year.
However, by the following December, Cllr Andrew Williams, who leads the Independents Putting Ripon Before Party Politics group on the city council and is also the North Yorkshire councillor for Kirkgate, told the Stray Ferret he had been “largely banging my head against a brick wall” in discussions with North Yorkshire Council on the topic.
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