Harrogate traffic to be counted for £11.2m Station Gateway

The amount of traffic in Harrogate is to be monitored as part of the £11.2 million Station Gateway scheme.

Speaking at a consultation event today on the latest designs for the scheme, Richard Binks, head of major traffic and infrastructure at North Yorkshire County Council, said it had asked consultants to count the volume of traffic.

Mr Binks said current forecasts were based on pre-covid surveys and it was likely traffic had reduced since then.

North Yorkshire County Council said last month the scheme would extend the average journey time around town by 73 seconds at peak times.

Mr Binks said this had now been amended to 50 seconds because plans to reduce two approaches to the Odeon cinema to single lanes had been abandoned.

He said he suspected the traffic count would further negate the argument that the scheme will slow down traffic, even though it will reduce part of Station Parade to one lane.

Mr Binks said it was a common misconception that reducing the number of lanes around town caused congestion. He added that having more efficient junctions, with upgraded smart traffic lights on Station Parade, would improve traffic flow.

He said:

“We are working towards submitting a full business case in the new year so we have about six months to finalise designs.”

Today’s consultation event was the first of three in which people can see the latest designs.

Station Gateway phase 3 design

A document displaying the latest designs at today’s consultation event.

In another development today, Mr Binks said the taxi rank on Station Parade would now remain the same length, after the county council indicated last month it would be shortened.

Mr Binks was one of four officials at today’s consultation event answering questions on the latest designs, which were on display.

Further events will be held tomorrow and Saturday from 11am to 4pm at Victoria Shopping Centre.

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Mr Binks acknowledged there were concerns but he said the overwhelming sentiment today was positive and he detected a “softening” of attitudes towards the scheme, which would reduce part of Station Parade to single lane and part pedestrianise James Street.

Station Parade

Station Parade

Business groups have expressed concern about the impact on trade but Mr Binks said the regeneration of the town centre would make it more attractive and encourage shoppers, as well as making it better for cyclists and pedestrians.

He added the loss of a small number of parking spaces would not have a significant impact because there was “an abundance of car parking in Harrogate”.

Mr Binks also said the scheme remained affordable despite the increase in cost of raw materials over the last year.

You can take part in the consultation online here.

What is the Station Gateway?

The project is one of three in North Yorkshire, and 39 nationally, being funded by the Department for Transport’s Transforming Cities Fund to promote active travel.

North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority all support the gateway.

Work is due to start in late spring next year.

Stray Views: Station Gateway ‘will degrade things’

Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. Send your views to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Station Gateway criticism

Having read the latest on this project I see that the council admit that pedestrianising James Street will reduce business by 2% and that by reducing Station Parade to one lane a journey round town would increase by 73 seconds. 

From day one of this ludicrous scheme we have been told how it will improve everything and be a big benefit to Harrogate. 

It would appear that so far the only thing guaranteed is that it will degrade things. It would seem that the maths I was taught in school in the 50s do not conform to modern teaching if these figures are now considered an improvement.

Malcolm Hodgekinson, Harrogate

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‘Satanic imagery’ in Harrogate

I must strongly object to what can only be described as the Satanic imagery featured in the posters in the streets and website for the “Harrogate Carnival”.

A “person” in a fetish leather clad red dress featuring devil horns and scary red makeup is not what I would call “family friendly”.

If this is representative of what this Carnival is about then I don’t think it is appropriate for young children to attend, I certainly won’t be bringing my family to it.

I would like to know if my hard earned council tax money is being spent on this outrage to good taste and decency? 

Ian Hardcastle, Harrogate

Borough council ‘ignored’ over Woodfield School

Harrogate Lib Dems are very angry at North Yorkshire County Council for ignoring our plea, made at the last Harrogate Borough Council meeting, to stop the closure of Woodfield School, which was agreed by all councillors.

The North Yorkshire Conservative Executive Member responsible for Education has not stopped the closure of the school and declined to ask the Secretary of State for Education to remove the academisation order leaving the children of Woodfield in difficult circumstances, long walks to schools and in one case, so far, siblings being potentially sent to different schools. 

We need more schools in Harrogate not less with thousands of houses still to be built in Kingsley where will all these young people go for their schooling? This is a disgrace and the young people of Woodfield are being let down so, so badly.

Pat Marsh, leader of the Liberal Democrats on Harrogate Borough Council

Do you have an opinion on the Harrogate district? Email us at letters@thestrayferret.co.uk. Please include your name and approximate location details. Limit your letters to 350 words. We reserve the right to edit letters.

Cabbies angry over plans to shorten Harrogate taxi rank

Cabbies have reacted angrily to plans to shorten the length of the main taxi rank in Harrogate as part of the £11.2m Station Gateway scheme.

The rank on Station Parade, opposite the train and bus stations, currently accommodates about a dozen hackney carriages.

Councillors want to reduce this by two vehicles and introduce a new bay over the road under plans to introduce single-lane traffic on Station Parade and create new cycle paths.

North Yorkshire County Council, which is leading on the gateway scheme, included the taxi rank proposals in new design plans that went out to consultation yesterday.

Tania Weston, the council’s programme manager for the gateway scheme, told a media briefing about the new designs last week that cabbies were satisfied with the new arrangements, which also include creating extra bays outside Mainline Taxis further along Station Parade.

Paul McMahon, who owns PM Taxis, said cabbies were told in talks with the council that the Station Parade rank would stay in its entirety.

He said:

“They have completely backtracked on what we were told.

“How can you possibly service a busy railway station, especially when conferences are in town, when you shorten the taxi rank?”

Kevin O’Boyle, who owns Central Taxis, said several town centre bays would be lost if the part-pedestrianisation of James Street also went ahead. He said:

“This would be an unfair, derogatory step.

“Problems were pointed out at council liaison meetings a good six months back but it appears to have changed nothing.”

Mr O’Boyle said shortening the main rank and creating a new bay over the road, which he understands will be for wheelchair-accessible taxis, would cause tensions among cabbies.

He said drivers sometimes already had to loop round Harrogate because spaces weren’t available on the rank and the situation would get worse.

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He added it would also cause a scramble for customers on two fronts and cause ill feeling amongst cabbies waiting on the current rank who saw a wheelchair-accessible vehicle nip into the new bay over the road and pick up a non-wheelchair user.

Mr O’Boyle added:

“They need to get it into their heads that taxis are part of the infrastructure of the town.”

“Creating another rank will only cause divisions within the taxi trade.”

Harrogate taxi

Ms Weston said in a statement:

“During the second consultation we received feedback from taxi drivers and companies about the proposed changes.

“As a result, we are retaining the current taxi rank on Station Parade but this will be slightly shorter.

“There will be a relocated taxi space on the opposite side of the road.

“We have also included a raised table on the northern part of Station Parade (between Bower Road and Cheltenham Parade) to make easier for people to cross the road to access the taxi company.

“Previously taxi drivers requested additional taxi rank spaces on the west side of the town centre and we will offset any loss through the Transforming Cities Fund project by providing new spaces in this area.

“Additionally, should a decision be taken to progress the scheme, the contractor will be contacting taxi companies to understand their requirements during construction, including the potential location of temporary taxi ranks.”

‘Fantastic regeneration project’

The gateway project is one of three active travel schemes in North Yorkshire, and 39 nationally, being funded by the Department for Transport’s Transforming Cities Fund.

It is supported by North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority.

Councillor Phil Ireland, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for carbon reduction and sustainability, said last week hailed the scheme as a “fantastic regeneration project and the first major investment in Harrogate in 30 years”.

But business groups have expressed concerns about its impact on retail.

£11.2m Harrogate Station Gateway will ‘boost business and house prices’

The £11.2 million Harrogate Station Gateway will boost business, increase house prices and reduce congestion, according to an economic report published today.

North Yorkshire County Council, which is leading on the controversial scheme, has opened a third round of consultation.

As part of this, it published an economic case report showing the impact of the scheme.

The document says there is evidence that town centre retail is at risk of decline and ‘the proposed scheme contributes to increasing investment, job creation and productivity’.

It says the project would also create better opportunities to travel by foot and bike, attract more shoppers, increase land prices and ‘act as a catalyst to urban redevelopment and wider town centre regeneration’.

Businesses have expressed concerns about the impact of the scheme on trade.

They fear the loss of parking spaces, particularly on a part-pedestrianised James Street, and extra traffic caused by reducing some of Station Parade to single lane traffic will deter shoppers, as well as the impact of lengthy construction work.

Latest Station Gateway visuals which show Harrogate's James Street pedestrianised.

How James Street will look.

But the economic case report says a survey of James Street users ‘indicates that over 90% of those doing business on the street would be unaffected by the removal of parking’.

It adds:

“Of the 10% or less that are parking, less than 20% were of the opinion that they would take their business elsewhere.

“In combination, were the parking to be removed from James Street, the impact on current shopping/business visitors could be expected to be less than 2%.”

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The findings are based on interviews with 294 people entering or leaving shops or businesses on James Street in October last year.

The report says the ‘overall impact on retail footfall is expected to be positive’ and that ‘research has also shown that station enhancements tend to increase the value of existing land and properties within certain radii surrounding the station’.

Congestion fears

North Yorkshire County Council said last week the scheme would extend the average journey time around town by 73 seconds at peak times. Some opponents fear the reality will be worse and the extra congestion will reduce property prices.

But today’s report rejects this. It says offices near the station are in high demand, adding the 11-storey Exchange tower on Station Parade has 99% occupancy and commanded office rents of approximately £25 per square foot.

Keane Duncan and Phil Ireland at Station Parade

Conservative councillors Keane Duncan and Phil Ireland at Station Parade last week.

Houses within 500 metres of the station could expect a 10% increase in value and houses within 1,000 and 1,500 metres could expect an uplift of up to 5%.

The report concludes:

“Based on local conditions, academic studies and case study evidence there is a strong economic case for the Harrogate Station Gateway.”

“The scheme is considered to support inclusive growth by presenting new opportunities to access jobs, education and training – that will serve to support a sustainable labour force in the district.

“This document has reviewed what is a large body of evidence and the strong precedents that indicate the Transforming Cities Fund scheme is likely to increase footfall and retail performance, increase property/land values and increase business investment.”

The project, which is not due to start until at least late spring next year, is one of three in North Yorkshire, and 39 nationally, being funded by the Department for Transport’s Transforming Cities Fund to promote active travel.

Today’s economic case report comes after Harrogate property developer Chris Bentley, who owns Hornbeam Park Developments, expressed concerns about the legality of the consultation process and said he was considering a judicial review.

North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority all support the gateway.

You can take part in the consultation here.

Questions over deadline for £11.2m Harrogate Gateway project hit by legal threat

A legal threat against Harrogate’s £11.2 million Gateway project has raised new questions over whether the controversial scheme can meet its completion deadline.

There is an agreement between the Department for Transport and West Yorkshire Combined Authority that the project to revamp key parts of the town centre should be completed by March 2024.

But revelations that one of Harrogate’s leading property companies has submitted a proposed claim for a judicial review has cast uncertainty over the already-delayed project which is being led by North Yorkshire County Council.

Letters obtained through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request reveal claims from Hornbeam Park Developments that a council-run consultation on the proposals was “unlawful”.

The council – which recently announced plans for another consultation this summer – responded in a letter to say it “does not accept” the claims.

A Department for Transport spokesman said it expects all projects funded through its Transforming Cities Fund to be delivered on time and that where there are delays, deadlines will be “reassessed by a panel on a case-by-case basis”.

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But when asked what a possible judicial review could mean for the Harrogate Gateway project, the spokesman added “we can’t comment on the specific funding arrangement” of the scheme “as this information is commercially sensitive”.

Separately, the council also said in response to the FOI that it “does not hold this information”.

Hornbeam Park Developments made the legal threat in February when it challenged the council’s decision to submit a final business case for the project despite survey results showing more respondents felt ‘negative’ (56%) about the scheme than those that felt ‘positive’ (39%).

The council then announced plans for another consultation and said it hoped construction works would start this winter, with completion in winter 2023/24.

The works will involve cycling and walking upgrades for Station Square and the One Arch underpass, as well the Odeon cinema roundabout and several other streets in the area.

But the most controversial plans include a reduction of Station Parade to one-lane traffic and a part-time pedestrianisation of James Street.

There are similar Gateway projects for Selby and Skipton, yet Karl Battersby, director of business and environmental services at the council, said the Harrogate scheme “has generated the most interest by far”.

He said: 

“It is positive that local residents and businesses feel so strongly about changes to their town and it is important to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to share their views on designs for the ambitious scheme.

“The project has developed since the previous consultation, and we know that the impact of the changes on traffic levels and flows were key issues raised in the previous consultation and we will provide further information on those aspects.

“We will also be consulting on the draft Traffic Regulation Orders, which would be required to implement the scheme.

“We will continue to work to the current timescales as set by the Department for Transport and West Yorkshire Combined Authority.”

Mr Battersby also said details of the next consultation will be announced “shortly”.

New Harrogate Station Gateway details revealed today

The councils behind the Harrogate Station Gateway said it was time for the town to “seize the opportunity” today, as new details of the project emerged.

A media briefing was held in Harrogate today before a third phase of consultation on the latest proposals begins on Wednesday.

Key elements of the scheme, including the part-pedestrianisation of James Street and some of Station Parade being reduced to single lane, remain in place and are non-negotiable, councillors said.

But the briefing did reveal some changes:

Odeon roundabout

The Odeon roundabout

Conservative councillor Keane Duncan, the executive member for access and transportation at the county council, told the briefing it was time to “crack on”.

He said:

“We want to continue with this scheme. It’s an exciting opportunity for Harrogate. We are at the stage where we either seize the opportunity or lose it.

“We need to take this scheme forward. If we didn’t it would be a travesty for Harrogate.”

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The scheme aims to encourage cycling and walking and make the town centre a more pleasant place to visit.

But business groups fear the loss of parking spaces and potential congestion could deter shoppers.

Cllr Duncan said the council didn’t want a “war” with businesses, which have expressed major doubts about the initiative.

He said the gateway would attract more people into the town centre and be good for business.

‘First major investment in Harrogate for 30 years’

Councillor Phil Ireland, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for carbon reduction and sustainability, said the scheme was a “fantastic regeneration project and the first major investment in Harrogate in 30 years”.

Cllr Ireland added that if it didn’t succeed, after months of wrangling, it could “affect how Harrogate is looked upon when future funding is available”.

He said the average car journey in the Harrogate district was less than 2km and this scheme would encourage more people in the town centre vicinity to walk or cycle. Those who didn’t, he added, still had 6,000 parking spaces, many of which are free.

The Harrogate scheme is one of three in North Yorkshire, and 39 nationally, being funded by the Department for Transport’s Transforming Cities Fund.

Tania Weston, Transforming Cities Fund programme manager at the county council, hailed the public realm benefits, such as completely revamping Station Square to include a water feature and new seats.

Ms Weston added empirical evidence suggested there was widespread misconception about the impact of active travel schemes on businesses, with them usually having a “positive or neutral” impact.

One Arch

One Arch

She said there would also be a focus on making One Arch “pleasanter” by improving the landscaping and introducing lights with a “shimmering” effect inside the tunnel.

Drop-in sessions will be held from 9am to 5pm at the Victoria Shopping Centre on August 4, 5 and 6 as part of the consultation. An online event will be held on August 10 at 6pm.

 

Harrogate property developer considers Station Gateway legal action

A Harrogate property developer is considering legal action over the town’s £10.9 million Station Gateway project.

Chris Bentley, who owns Hornbeam Park Developments, has concerns about the legality of North Yorkshire County Council’s consultation process.

In a letter from his lawyers, Mr Bentley threatened to take the local authority to a judicial review.

The letter, which was sent to the county council, Harrogate Borough Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority, which all support the scheme, said that the second consultation “failed to include sufficient reasons for and information upon particular proposals to allow those consulted to give intelligent consideration and an intelligent response”.

In response, the council said that it did not accept that the second consultation was unlawful.

It argued that the council proposed to undertake further consultation on the Harrogate scheme.

In response, it said:

“A further consultation can address your client’s concerns, but also provide a pragmatic resolution and avoid the costs of formal litigation.”

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Mr Bentley told the Stray Ferret that he felt the council had come up with “utopian ideas” and that the plan should be shelved.

He said:

“They just keep throwing the dice until they get the right answer. I think it should be shelved.

“There is so much other stuff that the town needs.”

He added that he would still pursue a judicial review because he felt the council’s decision making process is “flawed”.

Last month, the Stray Ferret asked the county council if there had been a legal challenge against the scheme.

Karl Battersby, Corporate director of business and environmental services at the council, said there had been “no formal legal challenge in response to issues raised regarding the consultation last autumn”.

The gateway scheme is set to undergo a third round of consultation this year.

In a report, county council officers said the consultation will be held alongside the publication of traffic orders required for the scheme.

It said:

“A further consultation will commence in July alongside the publication of the draft Traffic Regulation Orders required to implement the changed highway layout. Construction is targeted for an early 2023 start.”

The gateway project includes proposals such as the pedestrianisation of part of James Street and the reduction of a section of Station Parade to single lane traffic to encourage walking and cycling.

Strayside Sunday: we have zombie leadership locally and nationally

Strayside Sunday is a monthly political opinion column. It is written by Paul Baverstock, former Director of Communications for the Conservative Party.

I write the morning after the night before the Wakefield and Tiverton by-elections, both of which proved (predictably) disastrous for Boris Johnson and the Conservative Party.  In Wakefield, Labour took the seat with a majority of 4,925 on a 12.7% swing.  In Tiverton, Tory since 1880, a massive swing of almost 30% saw the Sir Ed Davey’s Liberal Democrats win with a majority of 6,144.  Conservative Party Co-Chair Oliver Dowden published a letter before 6am this morning, “taking responsibility” and falling on his sword.  Whether this is a put-up job, designed to draw the eye away from Boris Johnson’s actual responsibility, with a seat in the Lords to follow – after an appropriate passage of time – remains to be seen.  However, Dowden’s reputation is that of a decent fellow and, so rare in modern politics, let’s take it at face value that, as the man in charge of the by-election campaigns that led to crushing defeat, he has decided to do the decent thing and go.

It was Bill Clinton’s Louisianan campaign guru James Carville who, in 1992, coined the phrase “it’s the economy, stupid.”  And, in the end, it always is.  If the economy is in the tank, then it is almost impossible for governing parties to win elections, general, by or local.  And our economy is in serious trouble.  With inflation running at a 40 year high 10%, the cost-of-living soaring, with post-Brexit trade friction and severe global supply chain problems, the economic outlook is bleak and a recession looking and feeling increasingly likely.  At least interest rates, although on the up, are still in the low single digits.  With the price of petrol and diesel going through the roof – the Stray Ferret reported that diesel hit £2 per litre in Harrogate this week – with energy prices spiking and with the costs of the average food basket increasing by close to 50%, people are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet.  As part of an economy drive, I would recommend that you avoid filling up at Wetherby services, which now boasts the most expensive fuel in the country.

If you ask pollsters there is only one question that counts in public opinion polling; “is the country heading in the right direction.”  The single largest determinant of the answer is the state of the economy and, as the Americans say, how that is hitting people in their pocketbook.  Unambiguously, most people are worse off now than they were a year ago and you are never going to win elections in that context.

That said you can’t discount the facts of the resignations of the former Conservative MP’s in Wakefield and Tiverton – criminal sexual assault and watching porn (twice) in the commons.  These combined with the litany of bad behaviour on behalf of the Prime Minister – ethics violations prior, during and including Partygate – take one’s mind back to the allegations of Tory sleaze that put paid to the last long-standing Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher and John Major.  This lot aren’t behaving properly just when we need maximum grab in Westminster.

Boris Johnson carries on, blithely disregarding that which practically everyone else in the country knows; he has lost any authority to govern in our names.  Yet on Boris blunders and blusters, now seemingly safe for a year’s grace, post-confidence vote, per Tory party rules.  If the attacks on him from within his party had been coordinated, rather than piecemeal, then the confidence vote against him would not have been forced until the by-election results were in.  But because the parliamentary party itself is a loose coalition of Red Wallers, Shire Tories, Right Wingers and One Nation Moderates, there was little shared enterprise in the bid to remove Johnson, rather a collection of individual malcontents from across the piece.  Nor is there an obvious successor from any wing.  I hope it’s not true, but because the plotters couldn’t get their act together, we may now be stuck with Johnson until 2023.

Closer to home we are stuck with Harrogate Borough Council for another 9 months until it is abolished and the North Yorkshire County Council unitary takes over.  Following the May local elections, a new executive team took over at NYCC, which has prompted a rethink about the controversial proposed Station Gateway Development here in Harrogate.  In two previous public consultations significant concerns have been raised by residents and business leaders about the impact of the development on traffic in the town.  Yet another consultation – specifically on traffic impacts – is now to be commissioned.  This is the politics of delay, of kicking the can down the road.  Whether or not Station Gateway ever does get the go-ahead is now an even money chance, linked so closely as it is with the now dead in the water Harrogate Borough Council.

It seems whether in Westminster, or at home in Harrogate, we face a period of zombie government, neither dead nor alive, ill-equipped to deal with the very serious issues confronting us all.

That’s my Strayside Sunday.

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Meet North Yorkshire’s new highways chief

At 27-years-old, Keane Duncan has been made responsible for one of the largest road networks in the country and an array of multi-million pound highways projects.

It’s been a baptism of fire for the young politician, who has gone from the debates of student politics to the senior councillor in charge of highways in a short space of time.

His new role includes the £10.9 million Station Gateway project, a £60 million scheme to realign the A59 at Kex Gill and the newly incorporated highways company, NYHighways, which will oversee thousands of miles of road.

For Cllr Duncan, the position is an opportunity but he’s also aware of that the role comes with intense scrutiny – particularly in Harrogate.

Youngest county councillor

A resident of the village of Norton and a councillor for seven years, Cllr Duncan began his political career while studying at the University of York.

He got involved with the local Thirsk and Malton Conservatives and asked to stand for council.

“I hadn’t really been politically active until that point.”

He was elected to North Yorkshire County Council and then later to his local district council in Ryedale.

For two years, he was leader of Ryedale District Council – one of the six districts which will be abolished next year to make way for North Yorkshire Council.

However, he stepped down in February 2021 over what he described as a “cruel and unnecessary” council tax hike.

He said:

“It’s a very challenging political landscape over in Ryedale. 

“There was no overall control for any party and that represents difficulties in sometimes getting decisions through and doing what we need to do for local people.”

Ahead of the abolition of the county council and districts, Cllr Duncan was a key figure in the debate over what should replace them.

He backed an east/west model for North Yorkshire, while current council leader, Cllr Carl Les, was a proponent of the single unitary model.

Cllr Duncan said:

“I was very much in favour of what was called the east/west proposal.

“I believed passionately in that proposal at the time. I believe passionately in unitary local government, so I wanted to deliver that.”

New highways chief

Fast forward to May this year and Cllr Duncan has been appointed the the executive and will now have a key role in the county’s highways department going into the new council.

While he is now both the youngest member of the council and the executive, Cllr Duncan said he had no expectation of being given the brief.

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He said he had “no hopes or expectations” of being given a senior position until he was asked by Cllr Les.

He said:

“I was focused on getting myself here on these seats in the council chamber. The leader asked me to join his executive and I was very happy to accept.”

Cllr Duncan added:

“My portfolio area is probably the most public facing. It is the area where we get the most public comments and complaints.”

Multi-million pound Harrogate schemes

One of Cllr Duncan’s pledges since becoming the highways chief is to visit each area of the county.

Earlier this week he visited Ripon and planned to do the same with Harrogate in the near future.

The Harrogate Station Gateway scheme.

The Harrogate Station Gateway scheme.

The role in the district will prove to be challenging for Cllr Duncan, who will oversee schemes such as the Otley Road cycle route, Beech Grove low traffic neighbourhood and the Kex Gill realignment.

Perhaps the most high profile locally will be the £10.9 million Station Gateway scheme, which is earmarked for a further round of consultation later this year.

When asked for his view on the scheme, which has proved controversial in Harrogate, Cllr Duncan said:

“I’m personally supportive of that scheme and we are wanting to progress it.

“We are going out to a third round of public consultation to ensure that everyone can have their say and their opinions.

“For me, my test on the ground is what do the local councillors think and feel? They are the representatives of their local community.”

Cllr Duncan said he felt that that “on the whole” the council was trying to get the balance right on the various schemes across the district.

However, he added that he was aware of concerns over some of the schemes such as the gateway project.

His new role will also be to field complaints and criticism from the public, but Cllr Duncan said he is determined to do his job well.

“It is a difficult portfolio to manage, but I’m determined to do that by hopefully ensuring that we’re listening to people on the ground.”

Decision looms on future of Beech Grove low traffic neighbourhood

A final decision on whether to make the Beech Grove low traffic neighbourhood in Harrogate permanent is looming, according to the new county council highways chief.

Cllr Keane Duncan, who succeeded Don Mackenzie as the executive member for access at North Yorkshire County Council, said a decision was “upcoming” on the closure.

The measure was controversially introduced in February 2021 as a temporary one-year to closure in an effort to encourage walking and cycling.

County council officials later extended the trial until August this year.

Cllr Duncan told the Stray Ferret a decision will be taken in the coming months as to whether it stays or not.

He said:

“There’s an upcoming decision on Beech Grove as to whether it is made permanent or whether it comes out. We can’t really extend it any further on a temporary basis.

“It is either that it is there or it isn’t.”

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways on North Yorkshire County Council.

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways on North Yorkshire County Council.

He added that further consultation would be carried out if the decision to make the closure permanent and seek a traffic regulation order was taken.

Cllr Duncan said:

“For me, with the benefit of the time that it has been in place, it’s about seeing what people think about it now to see if their views have changed.”

Station Gateway

In a wide-ranging interview, the Stray Ferret asked Cllr Duncan about his views on the many multi-million pound highways schemes in the district.

On the £10.9 million Station Gateway project, Cllr Duncan said he was fully supportive of the the scheme.

He added, however, that he was willing to listen to cyclists, businesses and people ahead of the the third round of consultation this year.

Cllr Duncan said:

“I’m personally supportive of that scheme and we are wanting to progress it.

“We are going out to a third round of public consultation to ensure that everyone can have their say and their opinions.

“For me, my test on the ground is what do the local councillors think and feel? They are the representatives of their local community.”

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Meanwhile, Cllr Duncan said he was keen to press ahead with the second phase of the Otley Road cycle route.

County council officials were due to go out to tender on a construction contract this month with a view to starting work in the autumn.

Cllr Duncan said:

“We are pushing ahead with delivery of the Otley Road scheme.

“It is important to recognise that there is £4.6 million of funding for that scheme. It does connect in with all the other schemes ongoing within Harrogate.

“It is important to not look at every individual location in isolation. We have got to look at how this adds up to the bigger picture.”

‘Getting the balance right’

Cllr Duncan said he felt that that “on the whole” the council was trying to get the balance right on the various schemes across the district.

However, he added that he was aware of concerns over some of the schemes such as the gateway project.

He added:

“It’s about getting that balance right and recognising that at the moment most journeys are via car in and around Harrogate.

“It’s people trying to get to work, people trying to see friends and family and people visiting the town because Harrogate is a major tourist destination.

“We’re trying to encourage where we can for people to use other modes of transport. That’s not always possible, so we have to make sure we get that balanced approach.”

Look out for an in depth profile with Cllr Keane Duncan on the Stray Ferret later this week.