The £10.9 million Station Gateway scheme is one of the biggest and most controversial transport policies in Harrogate for years.

The scheme aims to transform the way people travel in the town centre by encouraging cycling and walking and reducing traffic.

Harrogate Borough Council, North Yorkshire County Council and the West Yorkshire Combined Authority have received UK government funding for the initiative.

Two proposals have proved particularly divisive so far: reducing traffic on Station Parade to one lane and pedestrianising the northern section of James Street.

Some businesses fear these moves could damage trade but many individuals and environmental groups support them.

Detailed designs are now being drawn up after the publication of a consultation document.

Here are edited extracts of what some stakeholders said in their consultation responses.

Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce

In the case of James Street, whilst we are against full pedestrianisation, we are not adverse to its semi-pedestrianisation, beyond its junction with Princes Square. We would also advocate retaining some of the parking bays.

Harrogate Business Improvement District

The BID supports the two lane proposals but with one dedicated to buses and taxis only. We don’t agree with the proposed two-way cycle lanes as it doesn’t form part of a connected and segregated cycling route and would result in reduced space for pedestrians — we would prefer to see some pavement widening.

We are concerned that the current consultation process hasn’t engaged the wider Harrogate community and urge you to consider sending details of the proposals via email and post to all Harrogate residents a this is such a significant step change in travel.

Harrogate Civic Society

There is a problem with making comments on these specific options (which focus on a relatively small section of Harrogate town centre) when there is no indication of these being part of a longer-term, integrated traffic policy for the wider area. As with previous proposals (some of which have been implemented) there is the very real possibility that, without a clear traffic policy for the whole of the town, these changes will in the future be seen as having been unnecessary or detrimental.

The need for major change to Station Square is questioned. The principal problems with this space relate to inadequate maintenance and poor collection of litter.

Commercial Street Retailers Group

An overwhelming majority of 81.25% of Commercial Street retailers voted for the two-lane option.

We are concerned and disappointed about the length, geographical reach and visibility of the consultation. With something as significant as this, all households in the Harrogate district should be consulted.

Harrogate District Friends of the Earth

Both sides of the cycling debate have criticised North Yorkshire County Council after it scrapped a controversial active travel scheme for the Oatlands Drive area of Harrogate.

The council received more than £1m from government to improve walking and cycling infrastructure.

It put forward four schemes in North Yorkshire, three of which were in Harrogate and one in Whitby.

But last week it dropped the Oatlands Drive proposals after fierce opposition from residents.

It initially proposed making the whole of Oatlands Drive one-way then revised this to make nearby St Winifred’s Road and St Hilda’s Road one-way.

Both schemes were abandoned, meaning the money will be spent on projects for Victoria Avenue in Harrogate and the A59 in Knaresborough, plus the one in Whitby.

Kevin Douglas, from Harrogate District Cycle Action, said he was disappointed with the way the council handled the Oatlands scheme.

He said:

“The Oatlands Drive one-way idea was dropped by the executive member, Don Mackenzie, at a very early stage.

“Hopefully future plans for the area will involve all agencies.

“On the initial plan, they didn’t even involve St Aidan’s School.

“As soon as there was some opposition they dropped the scheme. That’s disappointing. Hopefully, they learned their lessons and involve more people.”

Mr Douglas said the council had to accept active travel schemes inconvenienced some people and be stronger in the face of opposition if it was serious about improving walking and cycling infrastructure.

He asked:

“Is there a real commitment to dealing with any of this?”

Read more:

• Video highlights issue of motorists parking on Oatlands cycle lane

• Controversial Oatlands Drive active travel scheme scrapped

Anna McIntee, who lives on Oatlands Drive, campaigned vigorously against the proposals.

She launched petitions and posted on the Facebook group and website she co-founded, Harrogate Residents Association.

She said “everyone was up in arms” about the plans, which forced her to act.

“I couldn’t let go, it opened Pandora’s box”

“Number one for North Yorkshire County Council should have been to engage with residents.

“We want cycling and walking infrastructure but not at the expense of vehicles.”

The council has said the Oatlands consultation responses will feed into an Oatlands constituency feasibility study that will “reassess opportunities” for infrastructure improvements across the area.

But Ms McIntee warned the council could expect more strong opposition if it put forward similar proposals for Oatlands Drive.

“Yes, 100%. They would be wasting their time.”

Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. See below for details on how to contribute.

Does Marilyn not know about climate change?

Does Marilyn Stowe really not understand? The growth in cycling provision in Leeds or Harrogate is not to provide for the few people that already cycle.

The intention is to persuade a lot more people to cycle. Does she not know about climate change and melting polar ice?

Her article on Stray Ferret is just so incredible.

Andrew Willoughby, Knaresborough

Why prioritise cyclists when Harrogate needs parking?

I wrote to North Yorkshire County Council twice last year about the experiences of towns that have installed harmful, counter-productive cycling lanes and low-traffic neighbourhoods.

I wrote that the planners of those towns might be forgiven for not anticipating how damaging the reality of their schemes was going to be – because there were no precedents. Our councils here have no such excuse, not with the evidence from other towns writ large since 2017.

Throughout five different journeys by car, in and out of town, Monday to Friday last week, I counted 12 cyclists — in mild and sunny weather. We really don’t have many homegrown cyclists – for good reason.

The hills on Harrogate’s town-centre access routes, together with wet and windy weather, discourage cycling for local residents. Dedicated cycling lanes will never change that.

It is different for hobby cyclists. They are mostly the ones to be seen on high days and holidays, often grouped on the roads, identifiable by their distinctive apparel and indifferent to bad weather. They are rarely spotted using our shops and cafes or services.

Are we really going to make changes that prioritise cyclists over our entire population, when our town is in dire need of footfall, residents and visitors to shop and pile goods into their cars, or to drive into town to enjoy cafes and restaurants again? Surely we should be welcoming all comers and that means providing plentiful parking if we are to support the prestigious services and the famous retail heart of Harrogate.

On account of working-from-home there are already fewer cars coming into town, and perhaps fewer cyclists – a trend that may progress. Changes are coming and I think we should wait and see.

Jacky Little, Harrogate

Ripon people have chips on both shoulders

The attitudes expressed by both Harrogate borough councillors Swift and McHardy are insulting to the Scottish Nationalist Party, which exists to promote and advance the people of Scotland, and have nothing at all to do with Harrogate or Ripon.

Councillor McHardy’s response is quite typical of the constant whinging from people in Ripon, which is completely unwilling to accept that in 1974 Ripon was absorbed into the Harrogate district. We fail to see any similar grouses from other towns in the district, such as Knaresborough, Boroughbridge or Pateley Bridge, who seem prepared to work with Harrogate Borough Council to get the best deal for their locality.

Ripon seems to live in the past and many Ripon city councillors, who incidentally are often Harrogate borough councillors and North Yorkshire county councillors too, seem to regularly be elected on the basis of their anti-Harrogate Borough Council attitudes.

It’s often said that Ripon people are well-balanced because they have a chip on both shoulders.

John Edmonstone, Ripon

Read more: 

• Marilyn Stowe: They’ve made a dog’s breakfast of cycle lanes in Leeds
• Ripon grievances ‘like listening to the SNP’, says councillor

Do you have an opinion on the Harrogate district? Email us at letters@thestrayferret.co.uk. Please include your name and approximate location details. Limit your letters to 350 words. We reserve the right to edit letters.

Today is the last chance to have your say on plans to overhaul three highways in the Harrogate district to give greater priority for cyclists and pedestrians.

North Yorkshire County Council is behind the schemes for Victoria Avenue, Oatlands Drive and the A59 near Knaresborough, which are being backed by the government’s active travel fund and have been out for consultation since February.

The plans are designed to get more people walking and cycling as the district emerges from the pandemic.

But they have proved controversial, with a proposal to make traffic on Oatlands Drive one-way being scrapped after a backlash from residents.

And while new proposals for a 20mph limit, junction upgrades and restrictions on cars using the nearby St Hilda’s Road and St Winifred’s Drive have now been put forward, there are still concerns from some locals who say the changes will turn streets into “rat runs” and make the area “more dangerous” for pedestrians and cyclists.

Read more:

• Harrogate walking and cycling schemes: latest plans revealed
• Residents welcome decision to drop Oatlands Drive one-way scheme
• Harrogate could get county’s first CYCLOPS junction

Under the plans for Victoria Avenue, it was revealed last month that the street could get the county’s first Cyclops junction. which would work by separating cyclists from general traffic with the aim of improving safety for all road users.

These are the plans for the A59 near Knaresborough. Photo: NYCC.

The UK’s first Cyclops junction was built in Manchester last year and the proposal for Harrogate could link up with the town’s £7.9 million Gateway project, which includes major road changes and public space improvements in the Station Parade area.

Other proposals for Victoria Avenue include new cycle lanes, a zebra crossing and a ‘floating’ bus stop, which would see a stop being repositioned from the curb side to between bike lanes and the road.

The final scheme for the A59 between Harrogate and Knaresborough also includes new cycle lanes, as well as a 40mph limit between Badger Mount and Maple Close, junction upgrades and improvements to a crossing near Harrogate Golf Club.

The plans for Victoria Avenue. Photo: NYCC

Designs for all three schemes were revealed at the end of March as part of a second stage of the consultation, which will end at midnight tonight.

The feedback from residents will be used to develop the draft designs further before a final decision on which schemes will progress is made.

Cllr Don Mackenzie, executive member for access at North Yorkshire County Council, previously said:

“We have listened and are trying to reach a broad consensus about the measures we put in place, given that these directly affect people’s movements and their property.

“We think we can come up with something that addresses most of the concerns raised, but that still provides significant benefits for people who are cycling and walking.

“We encourage residents to take part in this latest consultation. Your views are important to us and they will help shape the final designs of these four schemes.”

The county council received more than £1 million from the government’s active travel fund for the schemes and must spend the money before April 2022.

You can have your say here.

Harrogate could get the county’s first CYCLOPS junction as part of a scheme to improve pedestrian and cycling safety.

Cycle Optimised Protected Signals are Dutch-style junctions, which separate cyclists from traffic to improve safety for all road users.

The UK’s first CYCLOPS was built in Manchester last year and now Harrogate could get one as part of North Yorkshire County Council’s active travel schemes, which are currently out for consultation.

Melissa Burnham, highways area manager, told a public event yesterday the idea had been put forward for the Station Parade junction of Victoria Avenue, which already has plans for new cycle lanes, a zebra crossing and ‘floating’ bus stop. She said:

“It is not something we have ever installed in North Yorkshire before but it is just an idea of what could be achieved.

“Essentially, the idea would be that any upgrade at this junction would have to incorporate all road users effectively and efficiently but it would be subject to necessary traffic modelling to understand the impact from Station Parade”.

Under the active travel schemes, there are also proposals for a 40mph limit, cycle lanes and junction upgrades on the A59 between Harrogate and Knaresborough.

Read more:

• Harrogate walking and cycling schemes: latest plans revealed
• Residents welcome decision to drop Oatlands Drive one-way scheme

There were also plans to make Oatlands Drive in Harrogate one-way to free up road space for more cycling and walking improvements but this met strong objections from residents concerned about the impact on traffic.

North Yorkshire County Council has now put forward new proposals for a 20mph limit, junction improvements and restrictions on cars using St Hilda’s Road and St Winifred’s Drive, but there were still similar concerns raised at today’s consultation event.

Saints area ‘more dangerous’

One resident, Nick Manning, said the restrictions would turn nearby streets into rat runs and make the Saints area “more dangerous for walkers and cyclists, especially children walking to school”.

Another resident, Roger Tock, questioned:

“How do North Yorkshire County Council think that the additional cars being forced to access St Winifred’s Road are going to be beneficial to the currently unacceptable pollution and parking problems which have been allowed to be a problem in excess of 10 years?”

In response, Ms Burnham said comments and suggestions from all residents would be taken into account during the consultation process, which recently moved to a second phase with the publication of designs and will run until 12 April.

Councillor Don Mackenzie, the council’s executive member for access, also said while he recognised the concerns around the initial impact on roads, the active travel schemes – along with other projects including the £7.9m Harrogate Gateway and Beech Grove Low Traffic Neighbourhood – would have a “cumulative” effect on cutting congestion and carbon emissions.

“All of these schemes are cumulative and eventually will have the effect of making it more attractive for our residents to walk and cycle rather than get in cars. In that way, we can reduce congestion.

“For example, we originally planned a one-way option for Oatlands Drive but several residents said ‘that would make my journey into town by car longer’. All we were doing there was trying to make it more attractive to use a bike or feet to get into town.

“My point is that many of these interventions here will be cumulative and eventually build up an extremely good walking and cycling network.”

North Yorkshire County Council has today dropped controversial plans to make Oatlands Drive in Harrogate one-way.

Cllr Don Mackenzie, executive member for access, told a Harrogate and Knaresborough Area Committee that the authority will not pursue the proposal.

Instead, a 20 mile per hour zone will be included in plans from next week.

The one-way proposal proved controversial, with 57% of respondents to an initial county council consultation opposing the proposal.

Cllr Mackenzie told the committee today:

“We decided, and I hope this committee agrees with that decision, that in the overwhelming view of local residents and that of the local elected member, that we should drop that option.

“Therefore, with effect from next Monday when the detailed consultation starts, we will be presenting a detailed design which does not include one-way working.

“It will include, however, a proposal to make the whole area on Oatlands Drive from York Place to Hookstone Road and all the saints residential area a 20 mile per hour zone in order to slow traffic down and bring about an element of safety for walkers and cyclists.”

Cllr Mackenzie added that the council will also look to improve the toucan crossing on York Place, building platforms at crossings at Slingsby Walk and outside St Aidans school.

Traffic filters will also be proposed for St Hilda’s Road and St Winifred’s Road.

Read more:

• Half of responses ‘strongly oppose’ Oatlands Drive plan
• 1,000 sign petition calling for Oatlands cycling plans to be scrapped