The £10.9m secured for the Harrogate Station Gateway scheme must be spent on promoting cycling and walking, one of the councillors leading the initiative has said.

Yesterday a survey revealed most Harrogate businesses rejected the key proposals of reducing Station Parade to single lane traffic and pedestrianising James Street.

Councillor Don Mackenzie, executive member for access at North Yorkshire County Council, said the project had been funded by the UK government’s Transforming Cities Fund, which was set up specifically to encourage sustainable travel.

Therefore, he added, cycling and walking “must be the focus of this scheme”.

He added:

“It would not be possible, for example, to focus solely on public realm improvements or parking.”

Polarised opinion

An online survey run by the councils supporting the scheme revealed 45% of 1,101 respondents were in favour of the full pedestrianisation of James Street and 49% favoured making Station Parade one lane.

It would therefore seem the scheme enjoys wider support among the general public than it does among businesses but the issue continues to polarise opinion as a second round of consultation looms.

Cllr Mackenzie said:

“I would like to reassure the businesses that a principal reason for our current gateway schemes in Harrogate, Selby and Skipton is to make town centres more attractive places to visit and to boost the local economy in each town.

“With our partners, we undertook an extensive public consultation earlier this year on the initial proposals, in which all residents and businesses were able to give their views. This included events specifically designed to enable business groups, including Harrogate Business Improvement District, to give their feedback.

“The BID expressed the views now presented in its survey at that time, and these were taken into account as we prepared the revised proposals, as was the wider feedback we received from the community.

“A further planned consultation will be launched next month, in which all residents and businesses will be able to comment on the revised proposals. Again, there will be specific opportunities for businesses to comment.

“This will enable us to have a proper dialogue and help us to understand the issues behind the headline figures of the BID’s survey.

“In the meantime, we will continue to engage with the BID.”

Read more:

• Harrogate businesses reject key proposals in £10.9m Station Gateway scheme
• Work on £10.9m Harrogate Station Gateway could start in February

North Yorkshire County Council today published details of the forthcoming roadworks on Otley Road due to the construction of a cycle route.

The scheme, which has been beset by delays, will start on September 20, with work taking place between 7am and 5.30pm every weekday.

Temporary traffic lights will also be used and there will be overnight road closures for resurfacing,

The council said it was liaising with Harrogate Grammar School to ensure pupils and vehicles travel safely to the school. Pedestrian access to homes and businesses will remain in place throughout the works.

Officials at the county council said they expected the work to be completed within 10 weeks, dependent on weather conditions.

The Stray Ferret reported this month that Hull-based PBS Constructed Ltd has been commissioned to construct the first phase of the route as part of a £827,100 contract.

Read more:

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Cllr Don Mackenzie, executive county councillor for access, said:

“These improvements are being delivered as part of the government’s £4.6 million award to the council from the National Productivity Investment Fund for sustainable transport in the west of Harrogate.

“The measures will help to improve safety and alleviate the congestion experienced along the Otley Road corridor. 

“They are essential to accommodating existing traffic and supporting future growth, as set out in Harrogate Borough Council’s Local Plan. The improvements will significantly benefit the community and help to create a better-connected and safer network for pedestrians and cyclists.”

Widening Otley Road

Cllr Mackenzie also apologised for any disruption caused as part of construction of the scheme. He said:

“The work has been timed to start after the busy summer holiday period, but we realise there will be some disruption, so we apologise for that and thank people in anticipation for their patience.

“Most of the work will be carried out during the day, to minimise noise for residents at night, though some work, such as resurfacing, can be carried out only at night under a full road closure.”

Work will include widening Otley Road on the approach to Harlow Moor Road as well as the creation of a designated left turn lane on the western approach to Harlow Moor Road and designated right turn lane on the eastern approach.

An off-road cycle route will also be created between Harlow Moor Road and Cold Bath Road as part of the first phase.

A review into traffic measures on Harrogate’s Oatlands Drive is likely to include new double yellow lines, according to a senior county councillor.

North Yorkshire County Council is due to publish a new set of measures this autumn to improve walking and cycling in the Oatlands Drive area.

The Oatlands Constituency Feasibility Study is being drawn up after the council ditched proposals to introduce a one-way system on the road following complaints from residents.

Cllr Don Mackenzie, executive councillor for highways at North Yorkshire County Council, told the Stray Ferret that he expected double yellow lines to be included in the feasibility study.

It follows concern that drivers have been ignoring signs erected by Harrogate Borough Council warning drivers they face a £100 fine or being towed away if they park on Stray land next to the cycle lane on Oatlands Drive.

The new signs on Oatlands Drive.

One side of Oatlands Drive has double yellow lines but the other side — where cars park — does not.

The signs only appeared last week but pictures have already emerged of cars parked right next to the signs blocking the cycle route.

Double yellows expected for Oatlands

Although Cllr Mackenzie said he could not guarantee where the proposals would suggest the double yellow lines be placed, he said they were likely to be included in a “comprehensive scheme” for the area.

He said:

“I’m pretty sure it will be included.”

Cllr Mackenzie added that the county council had outlined plans for double yellow lines in its rejected proposals for Oatlands.

Read more:

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But he added that introducing double yellow lines might just increase parking congestion on other streets.

Cllr Mackenzie said:

“We could have put in yellow lines, but we are also aware that residents on St Hilda’s Road are already suffering from long term parkings problems.

“While those people are not breaking any laws, it does make it difficult to get in and out of driveways.

“Every time we introduce them [double yellow lines], it tends to shift the problem elsewhere. If it did not have a knock on affect then we would have done it.”

Cllr Mackenzie said he expected officers to bring the review into Oatlands to him “in the next few weeks”.

A ‘more permanent solution’ needed

Following the introduction of the signs on Oatlands, a borough council spokesperson said the authority hoped people would “think twice” before parking on the street.

The spokesperson added council officials were working with the county council on a “more permanent solution” to the parking problem.

They said that parking on the Stray breached the Stray Act 1985:

“A breach of the act allows the borough council — as custodians of the Stray — to issue a £100 fine to anyone caught parking on the Stray, or to have their vehicle towed away.

“We hope that the signage will make people think twice about parking on Oatlands Drive and allow cyclists to use the cycle path as intended.”

In a letter to the Stray Ferret, Judy d’Arcy-Thompson, chair of the Stray Defence Association, said yellow lines was the “simplest solution” to parking problems on Oatlands Drive but the county council had been “ridiculously uncooperative”.

A public consultation on the controversial Beech Grove Low Traffic Neighbourhood scheme in Harrogate closes on Saturday.

The sudden decision to close the road to through traffic in February provoked anger, with some cars cutting across the Stray to avoid the newly-installed bollards.

North Yorkshire County Council initially said the move would be reviewed after six months but later extended the trial to 18 months until August 2022. But the consultation ends this weekend.

Don Mackenzie, the executive member for access at North Yorkshire County Council, told the Stray Ferret the intervention had successfully freed up road space for cyclists and pedestrians and there was a good chance of it becoming permanent.

Beech Grove will link up with the upcoming Otley Road cycle route, work on which is due to begin on September 6.

Cllr Mackenzie said:

“Its been successful. There’s been views in both directions but most residents have accepted it as a positive.

“I see it continuing after 18 months. It’s a part of town where we are making changes to sustainable travel. I can see the Low Traffic Neighbourhood remaining in place formally.”

Read more:

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Kevin Douglas, of Harrogate District Cycle Action, said early teething problems, such as motorists driving on the Stray, had been overcome and the scheme was now working well.

He told the Stray Ferret:

“We think it’s been a good thing. It’s working well.

“The problem is they haven’t done the Otley Road cycle route yet.

“We need to keep the Low Traffic Neighbourhood. It’s a key link into town.

“There’s been a noticeable number of cyclists and pedestrians using it. That’s a good reason to keep it and it will only improve.”

‘Just pushes traffic elsewhere’

The Conservative government has set aside funding for active travel schemes that aim to reduce car usage. Over the past couple of years, many other Low Traffic Neighbourhood have cropped up across the country.

Harrogate resident Anna McIntee, co-founder of the group Harrogate Residents Association, launched a petition calling on North Yorkshire County Council to scrap the scheme. It has over 400 signatures.

She told the Stray Ferret she believed all the scheme had achieved was to push traffic elsewhere in the town.

She said:

“The general feedback from speaking to residents is that access is a lot harder for them, especially the elderly who rely on their vehicles but also delivery vehicles and emergency services.

“The traffic has been pushed onto Victoria Road which is narrower and double parked, which is dangerous, as well as the surrounding roads, two of which have schools. This is causing more standing traffic and congestion leading to an increase CO2 emissions.

“There is no denying Harrogate is congested and we all need to work together to reduce our carbon emissions by easing congestion but blocking off random roads isn’t necessarily the solution.”

The highways boss of North Yorkshire County Council has expressed confidence that the authority will win most of the £1.5m it is bidding for under the latest round of active travel projects.

Councillor Don Mackenzie, executive member for access, approved the bid to the government’s active travel fund at a meeting on Friday.

The application includes funding for four projects, two of which are in the Harrogate district. They include traffic calming measures in Ripon and a feasibility study into the creation of a 7km cycleway and footpath between Knaresborough and Flaxby Green Park.

The bid is being made to the third round of the active travel fund. The council only secured half of the £266,000 allocated to it by the Department for Transport in the first round but won almost all of the £1m it bid for in the second round.

Cllr Mackenzie said:

“We have been told to expect roughly around the same amount we received in tranche two and as soon as we know what this value is our bid will be submitted with the government.

“Clearly there are various sources of money for these kinds of projects in the future. The government has set aside £2bn as part of its active travel fund and I believe it has only allocated around a quarter of this so there will be plenty more to come.”

Under the latest plans, around £550,000 would be spent on the development of “sustainable travel corridors” in the west of Ripon. These could include footway widening, better crossing facilities and traffic calming measures.

The council also said feasibility work for the proposed 7km cyclepath between Knaresborough and Flaxby Green Park would cost £50,000 and that it would link with wider plans to improve connections to York.

There are also plans for schemes in Craven and Ryedale.

Read more:

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Under earlier rounds of the fund, cash has been earmarked for cycle lanes and junction upgrades on the A59 between Harrogate and Knaresborough, as well as similar improvements in the Victoria Avenue area of Harrogate town centre.

There were also plans for a one-way traffic system and junction filters on Oatlands Drive but these were scrapped after a fierce backlash from residents.

Instead, the council is carrying out a feasibility study this summer to look into what other improvements could be made not just on Oatlands Drive but also the surrounding area.

The aim for the A59 and Victoria Avenue schemes is for construction to start in November with completion in March 2022.

A government decision on the third round bid is expected in autumn and, if successful, the funds must be spent before March 2023.

The planters on James Street in Harrogate and the cones in Knaresborough are to be removed imminently as part of today’s lifting of lockdown restrictions.

However, the Ginnel in Harrogate is to remain closed to traffic for an unspecified period of time to support outdoor hospitality.

The planters and cones were introduced last year as social distancing measures for town centre shoppers.

However, they have proved unpopular with some businesses, which say the loss of parking spaces has affected trade.

Traders opposed to the cones in Knaresborough.

Don Mackenzie, executive member for access at North Yorkshire County Council, which is the highways authority, said:

“It is our intention to remove all the social distancing measures and parking suspensions next week.

“I cannot confirm that it will happen on Monday since there may be some clearance work needed on the highways after the Great Yorkshire Show, which closed on Friday evening, but I do hope it may all be completed on Monday.

“The closure of the Ginnel in Harrogate is the only social distancing measure likely to remain in place.”

Read more:

• Knaresborough businesses call for social distancing cones to go
• Elderly woman waits two hours for ambulance after James Street fall

Asked why the narrow street would stay closed to traffic when the government is lifting all social distancing measures tomorrow, Cllr Mackenzie said:

“The Ginnel is a very narrow, little-used street where closure will remain a little longer to support outdoor hospitality.”

Lucy Gardiner, co-founder of Harrogate Residents Association, said it was “extremely pleased” to hear the planters were going. She added:

“After months of writing to the councillors and expressing the many concerns from the retailers and residents it is absolutely the right thing for them to do, to actually show they are listening.

“Convenience is an integral part to the high street, which was highlighted by Andrew Goodacre, chief executive of the British Independent Retailers Association in his recent presentation to the chamber of commerce.

“There is still demand for traditional shopping methods and Harrogate needs to lead the way for the high street — not became like every other pedestrianised place.”

Harrogate’s first bus lane could be built on Leeds Road from Pannal towards the town centre, according to North Yorkshire County Council.

The council has had long held ambitions to build a park and ride scheme in Pannal to reduce traffic and ease congestion.

Land near Pannal Golf Club and near Buttersyke Bar roundabout south of Pannal have been identified as potential sites for the park and ride.

A key factor in the location is that it is on the 36 bus route that runs regularly between Leeds and Harrogate. Leeds Road is one of the main routes into Harrogate.

Cllr Don Mackenzie told the Stray Ferret that creating bus lanes in Harrogate town centre itself would be a “struggle” due to the road layout.

He added one could be built on parts of Leeds Road if the park and ride proposal comes to fruition but stressed the plans were still at an early stage.

Read more:

• Uber-style bus service to be rolled out in Ripon

• Full steam ahead on Harrogate’s £7.9 million Station Gateway project

Meanwhile, the council is putting together a bid for a share of the government’s £3bn investment in bus services that is part of its National Bus Strategy.

The government has told all councils to publish a Bus Service Improvement Plan before November.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Service earlier this week, Cllr Mackenzie, said:

“In Harrogate we’re looking at park and ride, which will involve a bus contract, and we’re looking at bus priority systems such as bus lanes. So the National Bus Strategy just gives us an extra incentive to press on.

“We would be totally supportive of avoidance of the motor car and reliance upon public transport, whether that is road or rail or sustainable transport with a bit more walking and cycling.”

Work on the delayed Otley Road cycle path is set to finally begin in August. The first phase could be completed before Christmas, according to North Yorkshire County Council.

£3.2m was set aside to build the route in 2018 but the plans have been beset by delays that have frustrated Harrogate’s cycling community.

There are three phases to the construction of the route.

The first phase of the cycle path will connect Harlow Moor Road to Arthur’s Avenue close to Harrogate Grammar School .  This work could not start due to utility works on the Harlow Moor Road and Otley Road junction, which were completed last week.

The second phase of the cycle route will link Arthurs Avenue to Beech Grove. This phase meant a consultation over the use of Stray land.

Harrogate Borough Council agreed in March to designate a plot of land on Wetherby Road as Stray land in exchange for the loss of grass verges on Otley Road for the new cycle path.

The Stray Ferret asked the Duchy of Lancaster, which owns the Stray, if they have accepted the offer but we did not receive a response at the time of publication.

Cllr Don Mackenzie, executive member for access at North Yorkshire County Council, told the Stray Ferret:

“I don’t know whether the Duchy of Lancaster has accepted the exchange of land. But assuming that has happened, we’re all set to start. Work on the first phase should begin in August and should be completed within a few months”.

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The third phase will link Cardale Park on Harlow Hill to the route.

Rene Dziabas, chair of Harlow & Pannal Ash Residents Association (HAPARA) called on NYCC to communicate with residents and businesses affected by the works.

He told the Stray Ferret:

“The start date of August broadly accords with what we have already been told. Given that this first phase of the Otley Road cycle path will be disruptive, we hope that NYCC will actively pursue a policy of communicating with all residents and businesses affected on what can be expected. So far this project has not been well communicated to those most affected.”

Feasibility work will be conducted this summer on plans to build a park and ride bus service for Harrogate.

A park and ride scheme was proposed in January as part of a series of transport initiatives to reduce traffic and ease congestion.

Two locations in Pannal on the 36 bus route were identified as possible sites.

Don Mackenzie, executive member for access at North Yorkshire County Council, said at the time the scheme “could happen fairly quickly” depending on developments.

But there has been no news since as other proposed transport initiatives, such as the £7.9m Station Gateway project, have dominated the headlines.

This prompted a reader who supports the creation of a park and ride service to contact the Stray Ferret asking what had happened to the idea.

In response to requests for an update, Cllr Mackenzie told the Stray Ferret:

“All of the proposals in the Harrogate Transport Improvement Programme are in the feasibility stage and further work will be commissioned this summer.

“Nevertheless, a park and ride remains one of the measures we are considering to reduce traffic and ease congestion in and around Harrogate.

“The development of park and ride proposals would require more detailed modelling, testing of options and public consultation.

“We need to develop these plans along with other Harrogate Transport Improvement Programme priorities such as cycling and walking, bus priority and junction improvements.”

Cllr Mackenzie added council officers “are continuing to consider both the A61 and A59 to assess ways of improving provision for pedestrians and cyclists, provide bus priority and also seek to tackle some of the most problematic junctions”.

He said:

“By turning our attention to active travel models we hope to reduce congestion and improve the network without the need for additional, costly construction.”

Read more:

• Stray Views: Harrogate park and ride was a great idea — what happened?
• Harrogate park and ride could be built in Pannal