Mother Shipton Inn appeals for support as Knaresborough bridge closure beginsKnaresborough road set to reopen after two months of closureHalfpenny Lane closure extended in Knaresborough

Roadworks on a busy Knaresborough road have again been extended.

Northern Gas Networks is carrying out exploratory work to divert underground infrastructure at the railway bridge on Halfpenny Lane.

Work started on March 25 and was due to end in April but was extended until next week, May 17.

Northern Gas Networks, which is responsible for gas supply, said today work has been further delayed for six weeks, which means it is likely to continue for most of June.

The closure extending from the bridge to the roundabout next to Old Penny Gate will remain in place until additional works are complete and a signed diversion is in place.

Dominic Nevison, site manager at Northern Gas Networks, said:

“We have been working with other utilities to carefully plan this work to minimise the impact on road users and members of the public.

“Upon completion of our exploratory work we had originally planned to divert the sewer in the affected area of where our pipe is located. Unfortunately, this cannot be done due to the complexity of the work involved.

“We will therefore we need to divert the medium pressure gas main; this means that the work will need to continue and we are expecting this to take approximately six weeks to compete.

“We apologise for inconvenience caused and would like to reassure everyone that we will be working hard to complete the work so that we can reopen the road as soon as possible.”

The company said there would be no impact on the gas supplies to homes and businesses in the area.

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Northern Gas Networks apologises over ongoing Pannal roadworks

Northern Gas Networks has apologised after residents complained about ongoing roadworks in Pannal.

The company started utility repairs and maintenance work on the A61 Leeds Road near to the traffic lights at the junction with Follifoot Road two weeks ago.

The work includes temporary traffic lights in both directions on the A61 and on Station Road and Follifoot Road.

Residents and the local councillor, John Mann, said the work had led to long queues on Leeds Road in both directions, congestion and rat running, particularly during rush hour times.

The Stray Ferret took the concerns over the disruption to the company.

In response, Mark Mawhood, operations manager for Northern Gas Networks, said: 

“We would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused during these essential works. However, it is vital we complete them in order to continue to maintain a safe and reliable gas supply to the residents of Pannal.”

Mr Mawhood added that the company expects the work to be completed by Sunday, May 12.

The move comes after Cllr Mann described the work as leaving residents feeling “hemmed in” and “isolated”.

He also pointed to ongoing work by Yorkshire Water on Spring Lane, which he said had caused a “near perfect storm” of roadworks.

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Pannal residents ‘isolated’ by ongoing roadworks, says councillor

Residents in Pannal feel “hemmed in” and “isolated” as a result of ongoing roadworks in the area, says the local councillor.

Northern Gas Networks started utility repairs and maintenance work on the A61 Leeds Road near to the traffic lights at the junction with Follifoot Road two weeks ago.

The work, which is due to continue until May 13, includes temporary traffic lights in both directions on the A61 and on Station Road and Follifoot Road.

Cllr John Mann, a Conservative who represents the area on North Yorkshire Council, said the work had led to long queues on Leeds Road in both directions, congestion and rat running, particularly during rush hour times.

He also pointed to ongoing work by Yorkshire Water on Spring Lane, which he said had caused a “near perfect storm” of roadworks.

Cllr Mann said:

“Local residents feel hemmed in and slightly isolated at the moment.

“I have contacted the highways team at North Yorkshire Council and have called for urgent steps to be taken to reduce the effect on traffic, especially in the rush-hour and at school drop off and pick up times.”

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Cllr Mann, along with local resident Brian Dunsby, have both contacted Northern Gas Networks over the matter and urged them to put measures in place to reduce queuing, congestion and rat running.

Cllr Mann added that the utility company had agreed to manually operate the lights and to reduce the temporary lights at the top of Church Lane to a two-way operation.

The Stray Ferret put the concerns over the works in Pannal to Northern Gas Networks, but had not received a response by the time of publication.

The move comes as the company has started further work on Leadhall Lane in Harrogate.

Temporary lights are due to be in place until 7th May as Northern Gas Networks carries out “essential work to ensure the continued safe and reliable supply of gas”.

Northern Gas Networks said:

“Ageing metal pipework is being upgraded to ensure a safe and reliable supply of gas. Two-way temporary traffic lights are now currently in place on the junction of Leadhall Lane, Church Lane and Green Lane. These will be in place until Tuesday May 7 at the latest. Once this phase is complete, our work will continue down Leadhall Lane towards Leeds Road. It will be necessary to use two way rolling traffic lights whilst this stretch of work is completed.”

Mark Mawhood, operations manager for Northern Gas Networks, said:

“We would like to apologise in advance for any inconvenience caused during these essential works. However, it is vital we complete them in order to continue to maintain a safe and reliable gas supply to the residents of Harrogate. We want to assure residents and road users that we will be working hard to complete this essential scheme as safely and as quickly as possible.”

Meanwhile, the company is also carrying out repair work on Halfpenny Lane in Knaresborough. The work, which includes a road closure, is due to be completed by May 5.

Knaresborough roadworks to resume for 10 weeks on Monday

Traffic lights will return to a main road in Knaresborough for 10 weeks from tomorrow (January 8).

The lights will enable the next phase of a £200,000 scheme to repair and maintain the wall on Briggate to take place.

A section of the wall collapsed on to the road on September 14. Nobody was hurt but the rubble remained on the carriageway for almost three months.

Traffic lights were put up and North Yorkshire Council, which had been warned about the state of the wall multiple times in the run-up to the incident, finally began repairs on November 27.

Karl Battersby, the council’s corporate director for environment, said in November some cellars belonging to residents had been impacted by the collapsed wall and consequently the “works are now more complex than first anticipated”.

Work paused before Christmas when the first phase of repairs finished.

Now the next phase is set to begin. The council posted on social media yesterday:

“We will be carrying out further repairs and maintenance work to the wall on Briggate in Knaresborough from Monday, with work due to be completed by Friday, 14 March.

“This follows the collapse of a section of the wall.

“For the safety of our team and road users, two-way lights will be in place while the work is carried out.”

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‘Operational challenges’ delay major Harrogate roadworks

The completion of seven weeks of roadworks in Harrogate town centre has been delayed, Northern Gas Networks has said.

The company has been replacing metal pipes with plastic pipes on some of the main routes, including Parliament Street, King’s Road and Cold Bath Road.

The project was due to end yesterday but Mark Mawhood, operations manager for Northern Gas Networks, said:

“I can confirm that the extensive work taking place in Harrogate will be completed this week.

“We will however need to return to complete a small section of the network, which due to some operational challenges could not be completed in the timeframe. The planning team is currently working on dates for when this work will be caried out and we will then notify the public and media once this is scheduled.

“We apologise for inconvenience caused during these works, and we thank the public for their patience during this large-scale scheme.”

The roadworks are the second phase of delayed works  that were “paused” a year ago.

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Briggate roadworks likely to last ‘several months’ in Knaresborough

Business owners in Knaresborough have reacted with dismay to the news that roadworks on a main route into town are likely to remain for several months.

Temporary lights were installed on Briggate after a wall collapsed in September.

Two months later, the lights remain. But no repair work has taken place and residents and traders don’t know why it is taking so long or why the rubble cant be removed until work commences so traffic can flow freely again.

Parking in Knaresborough is notoriously tricky, and exasperated traders say this and a spate of recent temporary lights in town, including Briggate, is deterring people from visiting.

North Yorkshire Council has now said lights are likely to remain on Briggate for several months.

The roadworks on Briggate.

Danielle Bartley, who opened The Hungry Caterpillar kids cafe on High Street in September, said just getting in to work from her Calcutt home “takes ages” because of the lights. She said:

“Parking is a massive issue in Knaresborough. A lot of customers pull up outside and say ‘where can I park?’

“I’ve been surprised since we opened how busy Knaresborough is. There’s a lot going on. If you get that much footfall there needs to be something better put in place for parking. It’s also dangerous.”

Rebecca Lombardi, from The Clothing Store of Knaresborough on High Street, has started offering free deliveries to help people who struggle to get into town.

Ms Lombardi said long-term lights near the leisure centre had caused problems during summer and the recent spate of roadworks, especially Briggate, added to the woes. She said:

“We have a really big problem with parking and it puts people off coming into town. People are so busy these days and if they want to nip somewhere they want somewhere to park.

“It’s a challenging time for retailers with the cost of living and every customer counts. It feels like everything is against you as a business.”

Two months after the wall collapsed, the rubble remains.

Hairdresser Kelly Teggin, who has campaigned for better parking Knaresborough, said she didn’t understand why the rubble from the wall couldn’t be removed until work began. She added:

“Most businesses and residents want the road cleared as soon as possible.”

North Yorkshire Council highways area manager Melisa Burnham said:

“We have temporary lights on Briggate as a result of the wall collapse. Work to repair the wall and ensure the safety of the structure will start in the next few weeks. This work is likely to take until Christmas, after which we will carry out maintenance on further parts of the wall, so signals will be in place for several months.”

Ms Burnham said emergency gas works at Abbey Road and Blands Hill had also caused disruption recently, but this was “unavoidable”.

Ms Burnham added the council had “asked Northern Gas Network to man the lights at peak time to minimise the disruption”.

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Four-way lights on Harrogate’s Penny Pot Lane to last for two-weeks

Four-way traffic lights on Penny Pot Lane in Harrogate are set to remain in place for two weeks.

Northern Gas Networks put the lights in place today near to the Jubilee roundabout as part of gas works in the area.

It has caused lengthy delays for traffic heading in and around Harrogate today.

The works are part of a mains replacement project that has been completed in phases since earlier this year, and planned in collaboration with North Yorkshire Council.

It involves replacing the old metallic mains with new plastic pipe to ensure gas supply to the area of Harrogate.

Dave Smales, site manager at Northern Gas Networks, said:

“We introduced the four-way temporary lights today in order to protect our engineers due to the depth and location of the main under the road.

“Its location near the roundabout meant that instead of being able to work in the verge, we required a deep excavation with fencing protection in the carriageway.

“The lights will stay in position for two weeks and will then be removed before work moves to the other side of the roundabout.

“We don’t currently expect that section to require traffic management for us to complete, however we will have to assess the depth of the main once we’ve dug down.

“We’d like to apologise to customers and road users for any inconvenience experienced during these works, however they are essential to maintaining a safe and reliable gas supply to this part of the town.

“We’re working as safely and quickly as we can to complete this project as soon as possible.”

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Harrogate road to close to traffic for week

A Harrogate town centre road is to close to traffic for a week from Thursday morning.

Northern Gas Networks announced the closure of Montpellier Gardens today as part of its ongoing seven-week programme of work in the area.

The street, which links The Ginnel and Montpellier Road, was not due to close.

But Northern Gas Networks, which is responsible for distributing gas, blamed “incorrect information on plans and the location of the gas main” as the reason for the decision.

However, the four-way lights at the end of Parliament Street will be removed the following day.

Mark Mawhood operations manager at gas distributor Northern Gas Networks, said:

“I can confirm that the works on the four-way lights at Crescent Road/Parliament Street/Ripon Road/King’s Road will be completed and all traffic management removed by Friday.

“We are now moving onto Montpellier Road and the roundabout. A road closure will need to be in place on Montpellier Gardens from Thursday morning (October 19) for one week.

“There will be a diversion in place via Montpellier Street, we will also need to reverse the one-way system.

“Please note that Montpellier Car Park and businesses can be accessed using the diversion route.”

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A Northern Gas Networks map showing the traffic arrangements.

Mr Mawhood said all businesses and residents in and around the diversion and road closure have been informed with a hand delivered letter and a diversion plan.

He added:

“The closure was not originally planned; this is due to incorrect information on plans and the location of the gas main.

“We apologise for any inconvenience caused; however, it is essential that we carry out these works to ensure the to ensure the continued safe and reliable supply of gas to customers in the area.”