Safety (speed) camera locations for forthcoming week

North Yorkshire Police will be carrying out mobile safety camera enforcement on the following roads between Wednesday 1 February 2012 and Tuesday 7 February 2012.

•A64 Seamer by-pass Scarborough
•B1249 Staxton Wold, Staxton, Scarborough
•B1249 Foxholes to county boundary
•A1039 Filey Road at Flixton
•A165 Reighton by-pass
•A64 Seamer Road, Scarborough
•A64 east-bound carriageway, Bowbridge Farm Tadcaster
•A64 west-bound carriageway, Bowbridge Farm, Tadcaster
•A1237 Monks Cross, York
•The Village, Stockton-on-the-Forest, York
•A1036 Malton Road, York
•A1237 Monks Cross, York
•York Road, Haxby, York
•Broadway, Fulford, York
•Murton Way, Muton, York
•Fordlands Road, Fulford, York
•A1237 Monks Cross, York
•B1222 Naburn lane, York
•B1228 Main Street, Elvington, York
•B1228 Dunnington Lodge, Elvington, York

The mobile safety cameras will be in operation at the above sites at various times during the dates stated. Cameras will not be in use on the above routes all day, every day.

School half term activities at Energise on Cornlands Road

School holiday activities at Energise

Energise run many extra courses and activities during school holidays, including climbing, trampolining, tennis and rollerskating. Details on upcoming holiday activities at Energise are available from the Shine webpages.

Activities can be booked by calling Energise on (01904) 552424, or visiting the centre in person. Cash, cheque and most credit or debit cards are accepted and payment must be made on booking.

double click to enlarge

Consultation starts on Askham Bar park and ride changes

click to enlarge

Residents can now find the consultation documents, about the layout of the new park and ride sites, on the Councils web site.

The access arrangements for the site at Askham Bar are considerably more complex than the original roundabout plan. However the entrance is still beyond the Tadcaster Road/ Sim Balk Lane junction and should have the effect of removing a lot of the incoming traffic which currently clogs up the Tesco roundabout.

There may be concerns about having 2 pelican crossings and two sets of traffic lights in Tadcaster Road all in the space of less than 1/4 mile. Outgoing traffic queues may, as a result, be worse during the evening peak.

Residents have until March to make their views known

Dringhouses and Woodthorpe ward committee budget – ballot results

double click to enlarge

Residents recently voted on how they would like to see the Ward Committee budget allocated for the next 12 months. The results are reproduced above.

It is unclear how much money will be available for this activity during the next financial year, although cuts have been forecast.

We will publish the final list on this web site when the budget allocation has been decided.

Launch of York 800

This year, the City of York will be 800 years old.  In 1212, King John gave York its first Charter so that it could have a council led by a mayor and be able to raise local taxes and trade without restrictions.  The day the charter was given was July 9th but the celebration was launched by the present Lord Mayor at a special Breakfast in the Mansion House recently.  

He was able to announce that Her Majesty the Queen will be visiting York Minster on April 5th , Maundy Thursday,  and will present 85 deserving pensioners with specially minted Maundy Money  –  one person for each year of her age. As celebration in 2012 will include the Mystery Plays, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the Olympics; it looks as if it will be year to remember.

Residents in the dark over missing street lights

As you will be aware City of York Council has recently removed some street lighting from a number of roads in the ward on safety grounds. This work was carried out without warning, with no advance notice being given to either Ward Councillors or local residents, leaving many people unaware of what was happening.

This is clearly unacceptable and residents should have been told that the work was being carried out and why. The Liberal Democrat Council Group will be raising the issue with the Labour Cabinet and asking why they failed to tell residents that street lights would be removed.

A number of residents have contacted us to ask when the lights are likely to be replaced.  Around 500 street lights have been removed across the city, meaning the Council needs to find around £1000 per lamp post to pay for replacements. The Labour Cabinet did not identify any funding for replacing the lights before agreeing to their removal and so far the money has not yet been found. It is likely that, at the very earliest, funding to replace the lights will not be found until the new financial year. This means that the lights are unlikely to be replaced before the summer and residents will be left to manage through the remainder of the dark winter nights with reduced street lighting. 

The removal of the lights has left many residents concerned about possible safety issues. While the weather has been unusually mild so far this winter, if there is a cold spell the reduced lighting will make it harder to spot ice on the pavements and many elderly residents are concerned about not being able to go outside. Concerns have also been raised about the effect the removal of the lights will have on the risk of crime.

If you have specific concerns about the impact that the lost lighting will have on your street, or the effect it will have on you or your neighbours, please do contact us on the details above and we will ensure that the Council is made aware of the issue. We will also push to ensure that the Council prioritises the replacement of lighting in areas with vulnerable residents.

If you have any other issues that you would like to raise, please do get in touch.