A Council working group is discussing today what the new road layouts may be as a result of the redevelopment of the land behind the station (York central) and the former British Sugar site on Boroughbridge Road.

Most interest is likely to be generated by the illustrations indicating how the area around the station might look if the Queen Street bridge is demolished (see right).

However, the report also names Chancery Rise (the former access to the carriage works) as the potential major access to York Central. The route would run parallel to Wilton Rise and could affect the Cleveland Street playground.

This route would be the cheapest to build at an estimated cost of £9.1 million.

Other alternatives near the Holgate Business Park are still being evaluated. These options would also have some amenity impact on adjacent residential properties on Renshaw Gardens, and require re-provision of existing open space.

It is likely that a second access would be provided from Water End near the Millennium Green. This is likely to be towards the end of the development period .

Some other local access routes into the site from Leeman Road are also now planned.

The Council report is weak on indicative costs. There is no split between the assumptions being made on developer ( S106) contributions and public sector liabilities.

There is also a need for clarity on proposed access arrangements through the Marble Arch Bridge. There are massive implications on the rest of the City’s road network and these need to be modelled as soon as possible.

Residents will expect (and need) informed consultation with choices. There is a major possibility of confrontation with some Leeman Road/Holgate Road residents if they are not given more information quickly and in an accessible format (the Council report contained 450 pages with other supporting papers only being available on the web).

There is also a need to address issues like the provision of off site parking (for York Central residents) at – for example – the park and ride site

This development is currently effectively on the shelf because of its costs. It will go ahead at some stage – the only issue is “when”. The time available needs to be spent separating the “nice to have” (demolishing Queens Street Bridge?) from the “essential” (the bridge access from Boroughbridge Road), if an early start is to be brokered.