Roecliffe Lane in Boroughbridge is set to be resurfaced this year after residents began a petition about the state of the road.
The £106,000 works are part of a £9.4 million highways improvement scheme announced yesterday for North Yorkshire. The projects will begin by March 2025.
The Stray Ferret frequently reports on concerns about the state of local roads.
Two years ago we highlighted how Boroughbridge Town Council had said it was “deeply concerned” about Roecliffe Lane, which it described as an eyesore and hazard,
This month we reported 150 residents had signed a petition by Roecliffe Lane resident Matthew Paver calling for the road to be fixed. He said his bed shakes in the early hours of the morning because of the rough road surface and HGVs travelling over it.
In its response to Mr Paver’s petition, seen by the Stray Ferret, North Yorkshire Council said:
“We confirm that funding has been identified to deliver a resurfacing scheme at this location.
“It is likely that the delivery of this scheme would be early autumn 2024. Once start dates are confirmed appropriate advance warning notices will be erected and residents and businesses within the vicinity will be provided with letters outlining further details regarding the work and working arrangements.”
After the council publicly announced the news yesterday, Mr Paver said:
“While not ideal to have to wait several more months and put up with our house shaking all that time, it’s nonetheless on the books.”
“It has been incredibly stressful and disruptive to the family, my work, and has left us with a sense of regret moving to the street. When going door-to-door for the petition, I also got to find out several other houses experience shaking too.”
HGV concerns remain
He added:
“The main outstanding issue for us is the volume of HGVs and other heavy vehicles. Even once the resurfacing is done, it doesn’t change the fact we see a lot of heavy vehicle traffic on the road, and it’s noisy, dangerous, and in my opinion will still lead to some vibrations in the house.
“I am sure the resurface will resolve some of the shaking, but I’m confident it will still be there to some extent, which is why I’m pushing hard to reduce HGV traffic, let alone safety concerns for my kids and the many cyclists that frequent the road. The council needs to be resident-focused on this issue, not traffic-focused.”
North Yorkshire Council’s funding comes from the Department for Transport, which pledged a further £4.7 million in each of the 2023/24 and 2024/25 financial years for new highway maintenance schemes in the county.
Cllr Keane Duncan, the council’s executive member for highways and transport who is standing for the Conservatives in May’s election to be the first mayor of York and North Yorkshire, said:
“Keeping our roads and footpaths in the best possible condition is a key priority for us
“The extra funding we’ve secured means we can complete works in even more locations this year and next. This is a very welcome and significant boost.”
The council’s corporate director for environment, Karl Battersby, and Cllr Duncan will be asked to authorise additional schemes to the 2023/24 and 2024/25 highways capital annual programmes during a meeting on January 26.
The Stray Ferret has also approached Boroughbridge Town Council for comment.
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