Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Good morning everyone and welcome to our traffic and travel live blog, the last one before the weekend.

Whether you travel by car, bus or train we will keep an eye out for any possible disruption to your journey. All brought to you by The HACS Group.

It’s Connor again back on the travel desk from 6.30am. Spotted an accident or a road closure? Send your updates to contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

If traffic is moving well or it’s at a standstill then we will let you know with our updates every 15 minutes.

Full update – 9am

Thanks for reading our traffic and travel blog. There have been a few police incidents this morning as well as increasing numbers of construction sites around the Harrogate district. That’s all from me for this week. I am heading over to the newsdesk now. My colleague Suzannah will be back on Monday morning.

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https://www.hacs.co.uk/

Full update – 8.45am

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Full update – 8.30am

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Full update – 8.15am

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Full update – 8am

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Full update – 7.45am

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Full update – 7.30am

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Full update – 7.15am

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Full update – 7am

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Full update – 6.45am

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Full update – 6.30am

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Horrible Histories car park show heading to Harrogate

Horrible Histories is heading to Harrogate in April for a car park show at the Yorkshire Event Centre.

The centre, which is based at the Great Yorkshire Showground, will host Barmy Britain shows at 2pm and 5pm on April 3.

The event will also take place at Harewood House on April 5 at 11am.

It will feature the stories of Queen Boudica, King Henry VIII, Guy Fawkes, Dick Turpin, Queen Victoria and more.

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Families sitting in cars will be able to watch actors on stage and on a large screen while listening on their radios.

The audience can get involved by honking horns, flashing lights and turning on their wipers.

Neal Foster, actor and director at Birmingham Stage Company, said:

“I’m over the moon to be back on tour with Barmy Britain after its hugely successful tour last summer.

“It’s weird and wonderful to be performing in car parks and to see the audience having fun behind their windshields. We can’t wait to get back out there.”

The Birmingham Stage Company has produced 18 different Horrible Histories shows and taken them around the world.

Tickets are available here for the Harrogate and Leeds shows and cost £42.50 per car or £62 per car on the front row.

Fine people who flout covid travel rules, says North Yorkshire MP

A North Yorkshire MP has called on police to fine people who flout covid travel rules.

Kevin Hollinrake said many people in tier three areas had travelled to lower tiers because of the “greater freedoms”.

North Yorkshire moved from tier two to tier three today amid rising infection rates.

It is believed people in higher tier areas, such as Leeds, frequently travelled to the Harrogate district’s pubs and restaurants, which were still open until today.

Mr Hollinrake, the Conservative MP for Thirsk and Malton, said this movement of people had increased the spread of the virus.

He told the House of Commons yesterday:

“We would definitely want to move travel restrictions from guidance to being an offence.

“That would prevent a lot of the travel we are seeing, with many people moving from different parts of the country into our area, which is increasing infection rates.

“When the police have used their powers in terms of mixing within hospitality venues or households, that has been very effective, and the word has gone round quickly.

“It would have a similar effect if we started to fine people for travelling without good cause.”

Mr Hollinrake reiterated his call for the government to consider applying different tier restrictions to different districts in North Yorkshire. He said:

“North Yorkshire is a huge place: our districts are the size of counties in other parts of the country.

“Putting a huge county such as North Yorkshire into one tier masks huge differences in the infection rate among districts.

“Some districts have an infection rate that is two or three times that in other districts, so it is possible that some of our districts should be in a higher tier and some in a lower tier. We should consider that.”

Mr Hollinrake also called for grants to businesses forced to close to be increased.

 

 

NHS worker becomes first to receive covid vaccine in Leeds

An 80-year-old NHS healthcare worker has become the first person to be administered a coronavirus vaccine at the closest hospital to the Harrogate district to receive the vaccine.

Sylvia Harris, who joined Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust when she was 26, received the jab this lunchtime at St James’s University Hospital just outside the city centre.

There is still no news on when people in the Harrogate district will be offered the vaccine.

Ms Harris, a ward housekeeper who is currently shielding at home, said:

“I miss all the people I work with. I’m so glad I’ve got it done.”

Fifty hospitals across the country have embarked on the biggest vaccination programme in British history. Each hospital received a batch of 975 doses.

On Saturday the NHS announced that a small number of GP practices will begin giving vaccines from December 14th.

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Margaret Keenan, a 90-year-old grandmother, was the first person in the country to receive the jab at University Hospital Coventry this morning.

This lunchtime Sylvia Harris, 80-yr-old ward housekeeper, was the first of our colleagues to be vaccinated. Sylvia was 26 when she first joined LTHT. Currently shielding at home, she said; “I miss all the people I work with. I’m so glad I’ve got it done.” #CovidVaccine pic.twitter.com/I3pR6qjllA

— Leeds Teaching Hospitals (@LeedsHospitals) December 8, 2020

North Yorkshire still awaits the green light to offer appointments.

The Stray Ferret contacted Yorkshire Health Network, which represents 17 GP practices in Harrogate, and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust to ask if any residents in the district had been offered the vaccine, but has yet to receive a reply.

An update is expected at a press briefing tomorrow of the North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, a partnership of emergency agencies.

Harrogate and District Community Action is set to offer drivers to transport people to vaccination appointments.

Harrogate urged to continue social distancing as Leeds on watchlist

Public health bosses have urged people in Harrogate to continue to abide by social distancing guidance as Leeds is placed on the government’s coronavirus watchlist.

Dr Lincoln Sargaent, director of public health at North Yorkshire County Council, reassured that cases remain below average in the town and lower than that of Leeds.

It comes as the city was confirmed to be on Public Health England’s watchlist as an “area of concern” earlier today following an increase in cases to a weekly rate of 32 per 100,000 population.

The rate in cases in Harrogate currently stands at 12 per 100,000 with 19 confirmed in the past week.

Leeds City Council bosses said cases are spread across the city, meaning they may be linked to social interaction and leisure actives. 

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Officials added that cases were increasingly found in young people aged 18 to 34.

Dr Sargaent said residents in Harrogate, some of whom commute to Leeds for work and to socialise, should continue to abide by social distancing guidelines which remains as “important than ever”.

He said:

“We all need to continue to play our part in protecting ourselves and others to prevent the spread of covid-19. 

“The advice around hygiene and social distancing remains as important as ever. We must keep washing our hands regularly, avoid touching our faces and keep a safe distance from others.

“If you have symptoms, you must get a test. NHS tests are free and can be booked online via the NHS website or by calling 119.”

 

Meanwhile, Cllr Judith Blake, leader of Leeds City Council, urged visitors to the city to do their bit following a rise in covid cases.

The city being placed on the watchlist does not mean any further restrictions, but it may lead to further measures in the future if infections do not fall.

Cllr Blake said the city was approaching a “tipping point” and it was important for people to follow social distancing guidance.

She said:

“We have been working tirelessly with our partners and communities, doing everything within our power to keep the spread of this virus under control and to ensure Leeds stays open.

“However, we can’t accomplish that alone and this rise in infection rates means that inevitably, our window of opportunity is shrinking by the day and the city is rapidly approaching a tipping point.

“We completely understand that these past six months have put a tremendous strain on everyone in Leeds and that being able to get out, socialise and enjoy ourselves has provided a massive lift.

“But it is absolutely crucial that if we want to continue to do that, we all do it sensibly and responsibly and follow the latest guidance which is there to keep us all safe.”

Knaresborough woman steps up for asylum seekers on doorstep

A teacher from Knaresborough says she needs more support to help those seeking asylum settle into the Harrogate district.

Anne Morley has spent her free time in recent months taking supplies like shoes and mobile phones to asylum seekers in Leeds.

There are currently around 130 asylum seekers living in a hotel in Leeds. The coronavirus pandemic has meant that they are not able to go into detention centres.

Ms Morley has won the support of some people in Knaresborough but she needs more help. Asylum seekers are not entitled to any benefits before they have gone through a legal process and gained refugee status.

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She says it is a life in limbo for the asylum seekers after a treacherous journey from war-torn countries like Syria, Iraq and Sudan. Many are not able to tell their families that they have arrived safely in the UK because they have no working phones.

That is something that Ms Morley and charity Care4Calais has tried to change. Ms Morley told the Stray Ferret that asylum seekers want to come to the UK and contribute:

“Some people have this view that asylum seekers want to come here and claim benefits but it is simply untrue. They all want to work and build better lives for themselves. I know people who have gone onto work in Harrogate’s hospital or as carers or even as mechanics.”

Her plea for people to donate to the Care4Calais emergency appeal comes as the body of 16-year-old Sudanese boy attempting to cross the English Channel was found earlier today.

Harrogate 16-year-old girl missing for five days

A 16-year-old girl has been missing from Harrogate for five days and is believed to be in the Leeds area moving around hotels.

Casey Ackerley has been described as white, approximately 5ft 6in tall and of slim build.

She has very long, light, brown hair and was last seen wearing a salmon pink tracksuit and white trainers.

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North Yorkshire Police has passed the case onto West Yorkshire Police and has urged the public to share any information with the neighbouring force.

To share information anonymously, call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 – quoting 12200132258 as the police reference number.

Opposition parties demand investment after report reveals Harrogate has ‘UK’s most cancelled train’

“Appalling” and “unacceptable” say opposition parties after The Sunday Times reported yesterday that Britain’s most cancelled train is the 07:13 from Harrogate to Leeds.   

The paper published figures from ontimetrains.co.uk which provides statistics on rail punctuality. The paper revealed that the 07:13 was cancelled 28 times out of 55 since new timetables were introduced last year- failing to run on more than half of days in the December to February period analysed.  

Northern rail was stripped of its franchise in March for consistently poor performance and is now operated by the government.  

The Harrogate Line Supporters Group says it’s been told the cancellations were due to a shortage of staff and more services than normal needing repairs and that there are also serious problems with the 07:46 Harrogate to Leeds.   

Harrogate’s Conservative MP, Andrew Jones, who was Rail Minister for 8 months between November 2018 and July 2019 declined to comment to The Stray Ferret on the Sunday Times report. He has previously criticised Northern and supported the move to government ownership.

Opposition parties in Harrogate were united in calling for more money to improve the line. Judith Rogerson, spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats for Harrogate and Knaresborough, said   

We have had to put up with an appalling service for far too long. Whilst I welcome the removal of the franchise from Northern Rail, that is only a first step in the right direction. Responsibility now lies squarely with the Government to provide the re-organisation and investment that our local railways desperately need. 

Mark Sewards of Harrogate & Knaresborough Labour party, said  

It’s completely unacceptable.. Labour has long advocated for our railways to be brought back into public control, and it seems that the government has accepted our argument by terminating Northern Rail’s contract. Money needs to be invested in the Harrogate Line and other train lines in the north of England which have been woefully neglected by a decade of Tory mismanagement. 

The Stray Ferret will be tracking the performance of rail services in the district in the coming months.