Knaresborough road closure signs put up ‘in error’

Signs for a road closure in Knaresborough have been removed after the council said they were put up “in error”.

Residents were braced for a two-week road closure of the B6163 Briggate after the signs appeared and North Yorkshire Council ‘s roadworks map indicated the highway would be closed daily between 7.30am until 5.30pm from yesterday until November 1.

The council said the road, where a wall collapsed last month, would be resurfaced.

The collapsed wall

But there was confusion when the signs disappeared and no work took place.

A council spokesperson has now said the signs were “installed by the contractor in error” before being removed. They added resurfacing was now due to take place in April next year.

Councillor Matt Walker, a Liberal Democrat who represents Knaresborough West, said the wall needed repairing before roadworks could be carried out and he was trying to find out when work on the wall would begin.

Cllr Walker added:

“The signs were put in the wrong location — they were intended for High Bridge but had the wrong date on as that’s been delayed by a week.

“It all seems very chaotic and disorganised.”

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Harewood Bridge to close again for repairs

Harewood Bridge near Harrogate is due to close for one or two nights this week for repairs, leading to 15-mile diversions.

Traffic was unable to cross the bridge for four weeks during the summer holidays to allow Leeds City Council to carry out maintenance work on the grade-II listed structure.

Now the road is set to be closed overnight on Wednesday (October 18) and Thursday (October 19) between 9pm and 5.30am.

The closure will be in place while the council upgrades the surfacing on the road.

Cllr Matthew Robinson, who represents Harewood ward on Leeds City Council, said in a post on his Facebook page:

“You will recall that essential maintenance works were completed on the Harewood Bridge over the summer holidays.  As part of these works a specialist contractor was required to apply a small area of upgraded surfacing at the south end of the bridge and these works were unable to be undertaken at the time but we have now been able to arrange this.   

“We plan to do the works on Wednesday 18th and Thursday 19th October with overnight closures from 8pm to 5.30am. It may be that the works are completed in one night but this will depend on the weather conditions.”

The grade-II listed structure carries the A61 Harrogate Road over the River Wharfe and is a busy route between Harrogate and Leeds.

A diversion will be in place for drivers on the A658 Harrogate Road and A659 Arthington Lane to rejoin the A61.

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Knaresborough road to be closed for resurfacing

A road in Knaresborough is set to be closed for resurfacing next week.

North Yorkshire Council will carry out work on B6163 Briggate from Monday (October 16).

According to the council’s roadworks map, the road will be closed between 7.30am until 5.30pm everyday until November 1.

Advanced warning signs of the closure are also in place on the road.

The move comes as the road was recently hit by disruption after a wall collapsed.

The wall, which was painted by Knaresborough artist Joseph Baker Fountain last century, crashed on to the road on Thursday, September 14.

Two-way traffic lights were put in place as repairs were carried out.

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Long-term roadworks as Harrogate office block refurbished

Work on Station Bridge in Harrogate looks set to continue indefinitely as a major office block is refurbished.

Construction work is being carried out by HACS to refurbish and redevelop Copthall Bridge House.

Businesses operating in the premises were told to vacate the building in November 2018.

A proposal to re-clad the ground floor and repaint the upper floors was approved by Harrogate Borough Council in November last year.

The application, which was submitted by a company called Rural Offices LLP, said the plans would help to “assist in attracting occupiers which will further enhance the area”.

It added:

“The building has been vacant for some time and the applicant in keen to see in brought back into active use as quickly as possible.”

As a result, one lane on Station Bridge has been closed and the footpath next to Copthall Bridge House has been closed.

According to North Yorkshire Council’s roadworks map, a notice of the works runs until April 2, 2024.

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Long queues in Harrogate as roadworks begin to bite

There were long queues on the roads into Harrogate this morning as a seven-week programme of roadworks got underway.

Four-way traffic lights and lane closures at the junction of Parliament Street and Crescent Road caused the main blockage.

Traffic heading into town on Ripon Road and vehicles heading in the opposite direction on Parliament Street were caught up in the disruption.

On Ripon Road, traffic backed up all the way to New Park roundabout and beyond, with queues almost as far back as Killinghall. Skipton Road was also even busier than usual.

Traffic approaching New Park roundabout this morning.

Here’s what motorists can expect in the weeks ahead.

Crescent Road lane closure and traffic lights 

A lane closure will be introduced on Crescent Road and Ripon Road along with four-way lights at the junction of Crescent Road, Parliament Street, Ripon Road and Kings Road for two weeks. The existing lights will be bagged, and temporary traffic lights will be in operation from 7am to 7pm.

Montpellier Road (roundabout) & Montpellier Hill Lane closure

A lane closure will be implemented on Montpellier Road (roundabout) and Montpellier Hill Lane for two weeks.

Cold Bath Road traffic lights and parking suspensions

Multiple two and three-way lights will be introduced on Cold Bath Road for five weeks starting from Monday.

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Wellington Square Road closure

A road closure will be implemented on Wellington Square for two weeks.

Northern Gas Networks saud traffic lights will be manned seven days a week between 7am and 7pm “to ensure a smooth flow of traffic”.

Seven weeks of roadworks begin today in Harrogate

Seven weeks of roadworks are due to get underway in Harrogate town centre today.

Some of the main routes in town are likely to be subject to traffic lights and delays.

Parliament Street, Ripon Road, King’s Road and Cold Bath Road are among the roads affected.

The disruption will enable gas distributor Northern Gas Networks to replace metal pipes with plastic pipes.

Cold Bath Road could be the worst affected route, with “multiple lights” operating for five weeks.

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

Here’s what motorists can expect.

Crescent Road lane closure and traffic lights 

A lane closure will be introduced on Crescent Road and Ripon Road along with four-way lights at the junction of Crescent Road, Parliament Street, Ripon Road and Kings Road for two weeks. The existing lights will be bagged, and temporary traffic lights will be in operation from 7am to 7pm.

Montpellier Road (roundabout) & Montpellier Hill Lane closure

A lane closure will be implemented on Montpellier Road (roundabout) and Montpellier Hill Lane for two weeks.

Cold Bath Road traffic lights and parking suspensions

Multiple two and three-way lights will be introduced on Cold Bath Road for five weeks starting from Monday.

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Wellington Square Road closure

A road closure will be implemented on Wellington Square for two weeks.

Northern Gas Networks saud traffic lights will be manned seven days a week between 7am and 7pm “to ensure a smooth flow of traffic”.

Roadworks to hit main road in Harrogate over half-term break

One of Harrogate’s busiest arterial roads is to be dug up for two weeks, including over the half-term holiday.

A stretch of Skipton Road between King Edward’s Drive and the railway line will undergo routine repair and maintenance works carried out by Northern Gas Networks between Monday, October 23 and Friday, November 3.

The schools’ half-term break covers the week commencing Monday, October 30.

The news comes hot on the heels of lengthy and disruptive roadworks further west along Skipton Road, which only ended on September 6.

Scott Kitchingman, operations manager at NGN, said:

“We are carrying out some work in the Skipton Road area of Harrogate during the October school half-term break; the dates have been planned in to try to minimise disruption to the public.

“We are still determining the precise area of where we will be working, however, information will be communicated once plans are finalised.

“We apologise in advance for any disruption caused by these works, but it is essential that we work proactively in areas identified as having pipes that could be at risk.”

NGN is the company responsible for piping gas around most of the north of England and is currently carrying out a huge programme to replace old metal pipes with new plastic ones.

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Harrogate road dug up — just days after it was resurfaced

A road in Harrogate had to be dug up last week to fix a gas leak – which was caused by council resurfacing work just days earlier. 

North Yorkshire Council had just completed work near the Stray, giving the top end of North Park Road a pristine new surface at a cost it estimated at £144,350. 

But the tarmac was barely set when gas was smelt and remedial work ordered.

Northern Gas Networks, the company responsible for piping gas across most of the north of England, was called in and the leak was fixed the next day, with repairs reducing traffic to a single lane for the day. 

But NGN claimed the leak had been caused by the council’s machinery. 

Photo of the repair to North Park Road carried out by Northern Gas Networks following a gas leak.

The pristine new surface of North Park Road already has a repair patch.

Dominic Nevison, site manager for NGN, told the Stray Ferret: 

“We recently attended a gas escape on North Road, Harrogate. We were able to successfully repair the affected standpipe. 

“The cause of the gas escape was due to disruptions during the resurfacing of the road. Although this does not happen frequently it is something that can occur on occasions. 

“I am pleased to say that we were able to swiftly resolve the issue and reinstatement was carried out and completed at the end of last week.” 

“Our priority was to repair the escape as an urgent priority and ensure the road could be re-opened when safe to do so.” 

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North Yorkshire Council urged to fine utility firms over roadworks

Utility firms should be fined for failing to complete planned maintenance on time and for shoddy work to repair roads, councillors have claimed.

A North Yorkshire Council meeting heard senior council officers were examining whether utility firms could be fined from the day their repairs failed to when they were put right amid escalating frustration being expressed by residents and other businesses.

The authority’s Richmond constituency committee was told Yorkshire Water had rejected a request for its senior managers to appear before the committee to explain why its planned works in the Upper Dales market town of Hawes had sparked traffic chaos in May.

The move comes as Northern Gas Network recently pushed back its completion date for roadworks on Harrogate’s Skipton Road.

Three-way lights were in operation close to the junction with Sykes Grove for more than a month to enable Northern Gas Networks to replace metal pipes with plastic pipes.

Richmond councillor Stuart Parsons said firms across the county were seeing utility companies repeatedly disrupting their business by failing to properly repair roads after cable and pipe-laying works and then taking years to rectify poor quality work.

Yorkshire Water had, the committee heard, given assurances it was examining the issue in Hawes and that regular meetings between the council and the water firm were set to take place to prevent a recurrence of the Hawes incident.

Councillors heard a number of actions, such as improving its communications and taking on board local residents’ views, had been agreed by the firm.

The committee’s chair, Cllr Yvonne Peacock, said although she had initially wanted the firm to face questions from elected representatives, Yorkshire Water’s refusal to do so had led to “possibly a better outcome”, as the firm was now working with the council’s officers on a range of schemes.

The Upper Dales councillor added: 

“We don’t want a diversion taking us a round trip of 90 miles just because you’ve got a hole in the ground.”

Councillors said while most of the utility companies were not acting responsibly, Northumbrian Water had recently set an example by working with the authority to avert unnecessary traffic issues.

Cllr Heather Moorhouse, who represents Great Ayton, added: 

“If we increased the fines by the minute I think we might get a very different action. That they can just clear off on a Friday of a bank holiday weekend and leave a gap in the road.

“Emergency works is one thing, but planned maintenance is another. They make a lot of money. We should start charging them as the police do.”

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Delayed finish to roadworks on Harrogate’s Skipton Road

The completion date for roadworks on Harrogate’s Skipton Road has been pushed back until Wednesday next week.

Three-way lights have been in operation close to the junction with Sykes Grove for more than a month to enable Northern Gas Networks to replace metal pipes with plastic pipes.

The work on one of the town’s busiest traffic spots was due to have finished on Friday last week.

But Northern Gas Networks, which is the company responsible for distributing gas to homes, is now expected to be on site for another five days.

The roadworks on Skipton Road.

Mark Mawhood, site manager at Northern Gas Networks said:

“I can confirm that we are now in the final stages of the engineering work on Skipton Road, Harrogate.

“Completion is planned for Sunday, September 3.

“We have already begun the reinstatement work, but as this scheme has been extensive, the work will be finished by Wednesday, September 6. The necessary time extensions required to complete the work have all be approved by North Yorkshire Council.”

“We apologise for any inconvenience caused and we appreciate the public bearing with us while we complete the works safely whilst also managing any unforeseen issues that have arisen once engineering work began.”

Mr Mawhood did not say why the scheme had been delayed.

Scott Kitchingman, operations manager at Northern Gas Networks, previously said the work would “ensure a safe and reliable supply of gas to customers now while getting the network ready to transport alternative greener fuels in the future”.

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