Will enough of the pots of money for pothole repairs announced by the government find its way to sorting out Sharow’s unresolved road issues?

The village near Ripon has 195 potholes of varying dimensions along 300 metres of Sharow Lane — its principal throughfare — and New Road.

When Prime Minister Rishi Sunak cancelled the HS2 high speed rail project and promised to use the billions saved on solving the nation’s persistent pothole problems, Sharow resident and former parish councillor James Thornborough initially felt that his lobbying on the issue would finally reap reward.

But the long-time road and environmental campaigner now believes that his village could be overlooked as the re-directed HS2 is spent on other locations across North Yorkshire.

Spending of £630,000 to solve nearby Ripon’s long-running rocky road issues around Market Square looks a certainty, but Mr Thornborough has already spotted the potential get-out clauses that would enable North Yorkshire highways to make a last-minute swerve around Sharow’s resurfacing request.

The potholes run the length of New Road

An email sent to him last month by Barrie Mason, North Yorkshire’s assistant director for highways and transportation said:

“The Highways Capital Annual Programme for 2024/25 was recently approved. The roads in Sharow were not included in this programme, however, North Yorkshire Council has been awarded additional funding as part of the government’s Network North funding.

“We are currently in the process of developing an updated programme for 24/25 which will outline how this additional funding will be spent.

“Both New Road and Sharow Lane are being considered for this additional programme in 24/25. It is the intention that the updated programme will be finalised and formally approved in late January 2024.”

‘So many false dawns’

For Mr Thornborough, it’s the words ‘being considered’ which gives him most concern. He told the Stray Ferret:

“There have been so many false dawns on this long and bumpy journey and I currently feel pessimistic rather than optimistic, but have fingers crossed.”

He believes that the on-going situation is unsustainable and pointed out:

“All we are getting is reactive repairs to an increasingly worsening situation

“The current default of filling every new pothole does not constitute ‘corrective action’. Corrective’ action requires a sustainable solution and filled in Sharow potholes barely survive three months.”

Sharow Lane, where temporary-fix repairs have been made to the deteriorating road surface

Mr Thornborough added:

“New Road and the top of Sharow Lane bear manifest evidence of a failed defect strategy. At last count 195 repaired pot holes spanned 300 metres of highway. No other road section in the region bears evidence of such wholesale degradation. Driving over the road surface is a ‘bone shaker’.

“The North Yorkshire highways director has conceded repairs amounting to £200,000 are needed. To date that sum has never received capital award, despite the appalling condition. Intervention is required.

“In the case of Sharow, future tarmac repairs will only survive if the road is returned to a level surface. Highways engineers will need to complete a graded mechanical scrape followed by a new tarmac top. North Yorkshire Highways have no other option because they have admitted that the road surface is so decrepit that it will not support ‘dressing’ with chippings.”

Work to repair potholes in Sharow has not been included in the North Yorkshire County Council programme for next year.

Villagers are set to face continuing bumpy rides after discovering the capital programme for the 2023/24 financial year does not include the repairs, estimated to cost around £200,000.

Village campaigner James Thornborough told the Stray Ferret:

“As well as being bad news for anybody who drives, cycles or walks along New Road or Sharow Lane, this has wider implications for people across the county waiting for work to be carried out on potholed and uneven roads.”

His disappointment follows an email response seen by the Stray Ferret in which Barrie Mason, NYCC’s assistant director of highways and transportation, said:

“The delivery programme for the 2023/24 capital programme has been determined and cost pressures in the budget due to construction price inflation means that a number of schemes that were already programmed have had to be put back and consequently a scheme for Sharow Lane and New Road will not be delivered in 2023/24, but will be considered again against priorities across the county network for the 2024/25 programme.”

He added:

“I can assure you that the team will in the meantime ensure that these roads are inspected and maintained in line with our Highways Safety Inspection Manual and responsibilities as the local highway authority to ensure that any safety defects are repaired.”

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The Stray Ferret approached Mr Mason to ask what other schemes in the the Harrogate district have been removed from the capital programme for 2023/24, but no response had been received at the time of publication.

In February, after raising Sharow’s pothole plight with NYCC’s chief executive Richard Flinton, Mr Thornborough felt reassured after receiving a rapid email response from the county’s head of highways operations Nigel Smith, who said:

“Sharow Lane and New Road are at a stage where preventative maintenance is not an option and a more substantial maintenance scheme will be considered for inclusion in our Forward Capital Programme, which presently means that the earliest a planned maintenance scheme could be delivered would be during the 2023/24 financial year.

“By way of further information, it is anticipated that a full ‘plane out and resurface’ scheme is required at this location, which will require funding of up to £200,000.

“In the meantime we will continue to do the annual safety inspections and reactive inspections to keep these carriageways in as safe a condition as possible and keep the matter under regular review.”

Within days of the email,  NYCC workmen identified 38 potholes in Sharow and a temporary tarmac fix was applied.

Now, with the full plane out and resurfacing works ruled out for the coming financial year, Mr Thornborough, said:

“The council itself accepts that preventative maintenance is no longer an option for the affected roads in the village, but if they can’t find the £200,000 to do this job, it sends a worrying message about their ability to keep all roads across the county in an acceptable condition.”

The Environment Agency and Yorkshire Water are being called upon to investigate a foaming discharge into the River Ure in Ripon.

There are fears the discharge could be potentially harmful to humans, aquatic life and water fowl.

The Stray Ferret contacted the EA incident line after seeing the discharge yesterday and understands that the stretch of river near the Duchess of Kent Bridge on the A61 Ripon bypass has been affected since the weekend.

James Thornborough, an internationally-recognised authority on spillage on land and water, reported the incident to YW and said it would be normal practice for them to share the information with the EA.

The expert, who lives in nearby Sharow, told the Stray Ferret:

“I pass this part of river, which can be seen from the Dishforth Road, on a regular basis and on Sunday noticed the foaming on the water coming from a drainage outlet that feeds into the Ure.

“In my opinion this is not normal occurrence for this part of the river and that is why I reported it.

“It certainly warrants scrutiny by the EA to find out what exactly is being discharged and whether it is benign or potential harmful to people and animals.

“If it is discovered to be harmful, urgent remedial action will need to be taken.”

The drainage outlet (top right on the photograph) has been the source of the white foaming substance.

Mr Thornborough added:

“The EA, as the national competent authority for protecting the natural environment of the UK, is bound to assess any reported pollution incident and I would urge anybody who witnesses something like this, that looks out of place, to report it as soon as possible.

“Rivers collect water naturally from the atmosphere (rainfall), surface drainage (run off), ground waters, and underground aquifers.

“Unfortunately rivers must also cope with Industrial waste. Controlled industrial discharges are subject to license conditions. Uncontrolled industrial discharges occur due to operating controls failures, accidents or deliberate intention (criminal behaviour).”

What can the Environment Agency do?

Mr Thornborough said he expected the EA to analyse water samples. He added:

“Industrial pollution can reduce the concentration of bio dissolved oxygen in the water phase which can cause fish kills.

“At the very least, the biodiversity of the River Ure in the surrounds of this foaming event, has likely been impacted and microscopic marine organisms will have been killed upsetting the food chain.

“With this in mind, all stakeholders – from business operators, to  the public and compliance organisations such as the EA, have a role to play in ensuring that our precious water resources are safeguarded.”

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