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Kex Gill: Repair work unlikely to start before end of month

Work to repair a crack in the road on the A59 at Kex Gill is unlikely to start until at least the end of the month.

In an update, North Yorkshire Council said the wet weather and “further movement” had delayed and complicated matters.

The A59, which is the main route between Harrogate and Skipton, closed suddenly on February 2 after a crack appeared. It has led to lengthy diversions and increased traffic in places such as Ilkley and Pool-in-Wharfedale.

Barrie Mason, the council’s assistant director for highways and transport, said:

“February has been one of the wettest on record and this persistent rainfall has made the situation worse.

“We are monitoring the landslip daily and have unfortunately seen further movement since the start of the closure. This has resulted in additional investigations to ensure we have the most appropriate and effective repair scheme.

“Designs have now been completed, which will include sheet piling and backfilling, to address the existing slippage and prevent future movement of the road.”

Mr Mason added:

“Given the complexities of the work involved, we are working with our contractor on when it can start, which we hope to be before the end of the month.

“At the same time, we will also carry out any additional works which might be required in this area to minimise any further disruption once the road has re-opened.”

Motorists have previously expressed frustration at the lack of communication about the timeframe for work.

A council map showing Kex Gill.

Some have also questioned whether the closure is linked to work on the £68.8 million realignment of the A59 taking place nearby.

The realignment is being funded by £56.1 million from the Department for Transport and £12.7 million from the council.

Mr Mason said:

“As we have said previously, the A59 at Kex Gill has a long history of landslips and this latest closure is a result of the weather over the past few months.”

He thanked people for their patience and said:

“We understand the delay it is causing to journeys and would reiterate that we are doing all we can to complete the repair as quickly and safely as possible.”

The update does not give a latest estimate for the cost of the repairs, which were previously £115,000.

A59 Kex Gill resurfacing to be complete on Friday

Work to resurface a section of road on the A59 Kex Gill is set to be completed on Friday.

North Yorkshire Council closed the road for five weeks to undertake the resurfacing between Church Hill and Pace Gate as part of a £500,000 scheme.

It also involved essential stabilising work to the slope of the existing road as well as drainage repairs, gully-clearing, cat’s eyes replacement and maintenance of ground monitoring equipment

The move has caused a lengthy diversion through Pool in Wharfedale and Otley before rejoining the A59.

Now, a spokesperson for North Yorkshire Council has said the work is on schedule to be completed on Friday (November 10).

The move comes as the council is constructing a new road off the A59 at Kex Gill after a series of landslips.

The Department for Transport is providing grant funding of £56.1 million for the £68.8 million Kex Gill re-alignment project, with the remaining £12.7 million allocated from North Yorkshire Council’s capital reserves.

A new four-kilometre stretch of road will be created, replacing an existing part of the A59 which has been affected by the landslips.

The re-aligned route will leave the A59 at North Moor Road and re-join the existing road at Blubberhouses. It is due to be completed by autumn 2025.

Five-week road closure begins today at A59 Kex Gill

A five-week road closure has come into effect on the A59 at Kex Gill between Harrogate and Skipton today.

North Yorkshire Council has closed the road between Church Hill and Pace Gate, leading to lengthy diversions.

The council has said the closure will enable it to carry out resurfacing, essential stabilising work to the slope of the existing road as well as drainage repairs, gully-clearing, cat’s eyes replacement and maintenance of ground monitoring equipment.

A diversion will take drivers through Pool in Wharfedale and Otley before re-joining the A59. A full diversion route can be found on the North Yorkshire Council roadworks map.

The DalesBus 59 between Harrogate and Skipton will also run on an amended timetable from October 14 until November 11.

Buses will run twice a day in each direction on Saturdays only during the period of the closure and will operate from Harrogate through Otley and Ilkley before joining the A59 near Chelker Reservoir.

Work will take place on a section of the A59 which is next to the council’s £68.8 million Kex Gill re-route project.

Council officers will also be carrying out essential stabilising works to the slope of the existing road as well as drainage repairs, gully-clearing, refreshing lining, replacing cat’s eyes and maintenance of the ground monitoring equipment.

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways and transport at the council, said:

“Kex Gill has a history of landslips, and the route has had to be closed a total of 12 times in the past 22 years. We must stabilise the slope near the existing road to avoid any lengthy closures over the next two years whilst the new road is constructed.”

Section of A59 Kex Gill to be closed for resurfacing in October

A section of the A59 at Kex Gill is set to be closed for five weeks in October as a £500,000 resurfacing scheme is carried out.

North Yorkshire Council will carry out the work on the road to the west of Harrogate between Church Hill and Pace Gate.

The road will be closed from Monday, October 9, for the resurfacing to be carried out. Advance warning signs and a signed diversion will be in place.

Work will take place on a section of the A59 which is next to the council’s £68.8 million Kex Gill re-route project.

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways and transport at the council, said:

“Keeping our roads in the best condition for the money that we have available is one of the biggest challenges that we face, so the additional government investment is making a huge difference to this year’s highways budget.

“It is allowing us to complete even more works than expected, including this key section of the A59.

“Kex Gill has a history of landslips, and the route has had to be closed a total of 12 times in the past 22 years. We must stabilise the slope near the existing road to avoid any lengthy closures over the next two years whilst the new road is constructed.

“Although there is never a good time to carry out such works, they need to be completed before the inclement winter weather hits.

“We have also timed the other essential works during the five-week period to avoid further closures and have been liaising with neighbouring authorities to ensure an appropriate diversion route has been set up and agreed.”

The move comes as the council is constructing a new road off the A59 at Kex Gill after a series of landslips.

A new four-kilometre stretch of road will be created, replacing an existing part of the A59 which has been affected by the landslips.

The re-aligned route will leave the A59 at North Moor Road and re-join the existing road at Blubberhouses. It is due to be completed by autumn 2025.

Concern about inflation on £68.8m Kex Gill road scheme

Concerns have been raised about what impact inflation might have on the overall cost of the A59 Kex Gill new road scheme between Harrogate and Skipton.

Council officials first said the Department for Transport-funded scheme would cost £61.6 million but this rose to £68.8m last year due to inflationary costs, with the council covering the £7.2m shortfall from its reserves.

Since last summer, inflation has remained high and at a meeting of North Yorkshire Council’s Skipton and Ripon area constituency committee last week, Andrew Murday, the Liberal Democrat councillor for Pateley Bridge and Nidderdale, asked Julian Smith, the Conservative MP for Skipton and Ripon, who would pick up the bill should costs increase again.

Cllr Murday said:

“One can assume a fair amount of overspend on that project due to cost of raw materials.

“Can we have an explanation on how that overspend might be met?”

In response, Mr Smith said he had not heard about any overspend.

He added:

“I was focused on getting that money locked down which it was earlier in the year.

“I haven’t had representation from the council that more money is required.”

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service after the meeting, Cllr Murday said inflation should be a “worry” as construction on the new road progresses.

He said:

“Projects do overrun. There is wage inflation for the people who work there, the cost of raw materials, stone and energy requirements.

“I don’t know how much of that was taken into account when the money was awarded.

“It’s worth worrying about the increase in costs and how they are going to be met.”

A North Yorkshire Council spokesperson said the project is not currently running over budget.

Last month, contractors completed clearing an area next to the A59 between Harrogate and Skipton ahead of building a new three-mile stretch of road.

The A59 is a key link for North Yorkshire but the section that includes Kex Gill has had a long history of landslips which has caused lenghty diversions for motorists and extra costs for the council.

Site cleared ahead new road being built at A59 Kex Gill

Contractors have completed clearing an area alongside the A59 near Harrogate ahead of building a new three-mile stretch of road.

The A59 is a key link between Harrogate and Skipton.

But the section that includes Kex Gill has had a history of landslips, which has caused lengthy diversions for motorists and extra costs for the council.

Work on the £68.8 million project began in February and will see a new road built from Blubberhouses to just after Kex Gill.

The Department for Transport is providing £56.1m and the remaining funds are coming from North Yorkshire Council.

In an update, the council said the site has now been cleared, which has involved removing trees, and an access road is being built to allow builders to start work on the new road.

A stone wall has also been dismantled but will be reused as part of the scheme.
The council added the project will be finished in autumn 2025 after previously saying it would be in May of that year.

Karl Battersby, the council’s corporate director of environment, said:

“The £69 million Kex Gill realignment project is progressing in line with our programme. The site has been carefully cleared, and a construction access road is being built as part of the first phase of construction.

“The stone boundary wall has been carefully de- constructed and labelled to enable future re-instatement.

“The new road is scheduled to open in autumn 2025 and once complete will reduce road closures, congestion and delays on the A59, reducing the impact on the environment.”

The majority of the new road will be constructed without access to traffic, which means the existing road will remain open during construction.

Once open, the re-routed A59 is not likely to make journey times between Harrogate and Skipton any quicker but it will remove the risk of landslips.

The Kex Gill section runs through important habitats including a Site of Special
Scientific Interest.

The council said plans are in place to mitigate the impact on wildlife in the area that includes barn owls, bats, nightjars, wild game, toads and badgers.

Reduced speed limit at A59 Kex Gill to remain until September

A reduced speed limit on the A59 at Kex Gill is set to remain in place until September due to an “uneven road surface”.

North Yorkshire Council has introduced the reduction which sees the speed limit lowered from 60 to 40 miles per hour.

Officials at the authority said the measure had been implemented due to the stretch of Kex Gill Road being uneven.

It added that the speed limit reduction will remain in place until September when the road will be closed for two weeks and resurfaced.

Barrie Mason, assistant director for highways and transport at the council, said:

“We have introduced a 40mph speed limit on a section of the existing A59 at Kex Gill due to the uneven road surface. This will only be in place until we carry out a resurfacing scheme.

“A start date is yet to be confirmed but we anticipate early September, lasting for two weeks under full road closures with signed diversions in place. We will notify the public in due course.”

North Yorkshire Council spends £171,000 a year on weather services

North Yorkshire Council has agreed to pay £171,000 a year on weather services for the county.

The council uses weather forecasting and data to plan highway services, such as gritting.

It awarded three-year contracts to MetDesk and Vaisala in 2018 to provide forecasting and weather stations respectively.

The contracts were renewed for two years in 2021 and the council has now agreed to extend them for a further two years.

Vaisala’s contract was for £114,000 and MetDesk’s was for £57,000.

James Gilroy, team leader for highways asset management at the council, said in a report to councillors, who approved the deals last week:

“The weather forecasts from Metdesk enable an overall winter maintenance plan to be established. The real time data from the Vaisala weather stations allow this plan to be more finely tuned to the situation on the ground.

“Extending the contracts is the lowest cost option and given the current performance of the respective contractors it is a low-risk approach.”

A council photocall at one of the weather stations last year

The report added 10 new solar/wind-powered weather cameras and two new weather stations had been bought at the cost of £200,000 in autumn 2021.

Sixteen original weather stations were also upgraded at a cost of £265,000 “to broaden the coverage we have across the county”.

Met Office among bidders

A council spokesperson said the weather forecast it used “requires more detail that than the standard free to access services”.

They added the services were put out to competitive tender in 2018, when the Met Office was among the bidders.

The report said there are 10 climatic domains within North Yorkshire’, which are defined as areas with similar weather characteristics.

The domains are Northern Dales, Central Dales, Western Dales, Harrogate, Vale of York and Vale of Mowbray, Selby area, North York Moors, Vale of Pickering, Northern Wolds and Howardian Hills, Eastern North York Moors and Coast and Scarborough and Filey.

Asked why it was necessary to have 27 weather stations in North Yorkshire, the spokesperson said:

“Weather stations are placed across the county and monitor humidity, road temperature, air temperature and wind speed. Some stations have cameras on them, allowing you to see the road conditions. This helps road users to make more informed travel decisions.

“As you know, weather conditions can change rapidly. Having a wider coverage of stations allows us to make more informed and accurate decisions on gritting.”

Greenhow is the highest area around Harrogate. Pic: John Benson

Of the 27 sites, four are located in the Harrogate district, on the A6108 near Masham, the A658 Harrogate bypass, the A59 at Kex Gill and at Greenhow village.

The council is also able to access sites managed by National Highways on the A1(M) near Dishforth.

A list of all the locations in North Yorkshire is available here.

Concern over tree felling as part of Kex Gill reroute

Concern has been raised over tree felling as part of the £69 million Kex Gill realignment.

The project, which is North Yorkshire County Council’s most expensive and ambitious, will reroute a landslip-blighted road between Harrogate and Skipton.

As part of the scheme, the authority has started to clear woodland off the A59.

However, residents have raised concern that the move is “disproportionate” to the highways project.

Sheenagh Powell, who lives nearby, said the move was “distressing”.

She said:

“Hundreds of trees have already been felled which appears totally disproportionate to the scheme.

“The environmental impact is huge.”

However, county council officials have defended the move and said site clearance had been undertaken now to avoid the bird nesting season.

A spokesperson added:

“The stretch of the A59 at Kex Gill runs through important habitats including a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

“Plans are in place to mitigate the impact on wildlife in the area such as barn owls, bats, nightjars, wild game, toads and badgers.”

The A59 at Kex Gill, near Blubberhouses, is the main route between Harrogate and Skipton. Since 2000, the route has been closed 12 times following landslips.

Ministers at the Department for Transport gave the final go-ahead for the route last month.

The move will see the road rerouted to the west of Blubberhouses and is expected to be completed in May 2025.

The scheme has faced numerous delays and, following tender returns, the estimated cost of the scheme increased by £7.2 million to £68.8 million, which the council attributed to inflation affecting constructions costs.

The project will be funded by a £56.1 million grant from the Department for Transport, with the council covering the rest from its reserves.

A further £11 million has been factored into the budget to cover any issues with ground conditions or bad weather.

Kex Gill: A project seven years in the making

After being beset by delays and hiking in cost due to soaring inflation, the realignment of the A59 at Kex Gill is finally set to be built.

The project, which is North Yorkshire County Council’s most expensive and ambitious, will reroute a landslip-blighted road between Harrogate and Skipton.

For councillors and government officials, the route is a key east to west link.

As such, the money set aside – some £69 million – is justified and for ministers the deal they struck with the county council is seen as sensible financially.

Richard Holden, the roads minister in Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s government, echoed the sentiment on a visit to Kex Gill this week.

The site on Thursday morning had yet to have a spade hit the ground, but Mr Holden was confident that in two years’ time it would be a justified expense.

He said:

“It’s an important route here between Skipton and Harrogate on a local level. But, actually, it’s more significant for the north of England really.

“I grew up in east Lancashire, the A59 goes all the way through to York. It is a really important road. It’s one which we want to see thrive and it is an important tourist route as well during the summer.

“It’s also important for heavy goods vehicles.”

(Left to right) Cllr Carl Les, leader of county council, Richard Holden, minister for roads, and Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways.

Part of the reasoning behind the reroute is the number of landslips on the road.

According to council documents published in 2021, the cost to taxpayers for maintaining the road has been “increasing over the last ten-year period”.

Between October 2000 and May 2019, five landslides were recorded at the site and the retaining wall failed four times.

In January 2016, the road was closed for eight weeks and traffic diverted through Ilkley and Otley after heavy rain caused a landslide.

Meanwhile, an instability issue in May 2018 caused road closures for several months, which council officials said led to a “complex repair scheme” being carried out at a cost of £1.42 million.

Following numerous landslips and millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money spent on the A59, the county council decided in 2016 to do something about the problem.

How the new road will look

The reroute itself will see the existing road, which has blighted motorists for decades, returned back to moorland.

Richard Binks, head of major projects at the county council, explained that the scheme will be built in two phases.

The road to the west of Blubberhouses will be built first and include a climbing road at the junction near to Fewston reservoir car park.

The proposed reroute of the A59 at Kex Gill which has been proposed by North Yorkshire County Council.

The reroute of the A59 at Kex Gill which has been proposed by North Yorkshire County Council.

The second junction will be built at the bottom of what is now a single track road and will exit near to Kex Gill.

Mr Binks said the idea is to get the new road ready for traffic before moving cars from the existing A59 onto it.

He said:

“We want to build the new road first and then move traffic onto the new highway. Then we will focus on the old road to downgrade it and plant it up.”

Once the junctions are ready to be connected to the old road, temporary traffic lights will be put in place.

Meanwhile, as part of the realignment, new wetlands will be created near to one of the junctions and biodiversity will be returned to the moorland.

While it is unclear when the lights will be in place to connect the junctions, Mr Binks said it is expected the project will be nearing completion in summer 2025.

The council intends to enter into its contract with John Sisk & Son (Holdings) Ltd, which is an Irish civil engineering and construction company, in April to start the scheme.

Tackling inflation

One concern over the future of the scheme is the rate of inflation in the construction industry.

Mr Holden acknowledged that soaring costs were an issue, but remained confident that funding offered by the government was “sensible”.

The project will be funded by a £56.1 million grant from the Department for Transport, with the council covering the rest from its reserves.

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways at the county council, told the Stray Ferret that the authority had put “built in” funding into the contract to cover inflation.

The council has set aside £11 million to be factored into the budget to cover any issues with ground conditions or bad weather.

Cllr Duncan said:

“We have built in inflation, we know that that is a risk and that is something that is built into the contract.

“It is something that we are now hoping will not be an issue for us looking ahead.”

All major projects come with risks and barriers which need to be overcome.

But county council officials will take brief comfort that they can now finally put spades in the ground on the multi-million pound scheme before before tackling those hurdles over the next two years.

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Met Office among bidders

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How the new road will look

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Tackling inflation