Resurfacing works will close two key roads in York next week

A1237 Great North Way Roundabout

City of York Council will be carrying out essential carriageway resurfacing works on the A1237 Great North Way roundabout at Poppleton from next week.

The works will take place from Sunday 30 June to Friday 5 July for approximately six nights, between the hours of 7pm to 11pm.

In order to carry out these works safely, a three phased partial closure of the roundabout on Great North Way with temporary traffic signals on the A1237 will be necessary whilst works are taking place.

Essential carriageway reconstruction works on the A19, Selby Road

City of York Council will be carrying out essential carriageway reconstruction works on the A19 Selby Road at Fulford from Sunday 30 June. The works will take place for one week from Sunday to Friday between the hours of 7pm to 11pm. In order to carry out these works safely a temporary road closure of the outbound lane of the A19 from Naburn Lane to the A64 interchange will be necessary whilst works are taking place.

Outside the proposed working hours the road will remain open as usual but there will be minor works carried out through the day starting on Monday 1 July under local traffic management. Bus stops within the area will not be in use during these works, please ring 01904 551400 for bus route information.

Road works and congestion west York 14:30 25th June 2013. click to enlarge

Road works and congestion west York 14:30 25th June 2013. click to enlarge

Click the map for updated information

We strongly recommend use of the road works web site http://roadworks.org/ which shows the lengths of queues in “real time” (red lines) on congested routes

Cycle to work challenge starts next week in York

cycle to work

Workplaces in York are being invited to take part in a free competition to encourage more people to ride bikes as part of the 2013 York Cycle Challenge – and potentially win a bike worth £1,000.

More than 81 businesses and 1,500 people are set to take to the streets over the three week period from 1 to 21 July for the annual event.

The challenge is supported by City of York Council’s i-Travel initiative, made possible by £4.6 million of government funding which the council successfully bid for in 2011.

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Huge increase in “compromise agreements” in York

Top-secret-stamp-006

A Freedom of Information request has revealed a 400% increase in the number confidential payments being made to staff leaving the York Councils employment since Labour took control of the authority.

“Compromise agreements” are entered into when local authorities (and other employers) reach a financial compromise which facilitates an employee leaving its employment. Sometimes the agreements are reached to avoid the costs of an employment tribunal.

Because the details of the deal remain confidential, taxpayers are kept in the dark about the costs involved. They are therefore controversial and are used sparingly by most Councils.

2007 – 2010 The number of compromise agreements made with former or current staff from the start 6

2010 – 2013 (so far).The number of compromise agreements made with former or current staff from the start of 28

All the compromise agreements made in York contain a confidentiality clause.

430,727 hours devoted to home care in 2011/12

elderly_care
The total hours of home care commissioned by the York Council in 2011/12: 430,727

The proportion of those hours which were commissioned for each of the following client groups:

• People aged 65 and over numbers of customers 794, intensive 208, (79% of hours commissioned)

• People aged 18 – 64 with a Learning Disability number of customers 128, intensive 113 (3% of hours commissioned)

• People aged 18 – 64 with Mental Health needs number of customers 18, intensive 1 (1% of hours commissioned)

• People aged 18 – 64 with a Physical Disability number of customers 128, intensive 52 (17% of hours commissioned)

Labour cuts in the Arts in York revealed

The cuts that the Labour Council in York plan to make to the Arts have been published following a private meeting.

Changes to the Music Service can be found be clicking here

Separately a new team is created by, as the Council claims, “bringing together Arts, Heritage and Culture functions with City Centre and Markets services charged with the delivery of a high quality city centre offer. As part of the restructure a saving of £20k will be realised”.

Details can be viewed by clicking here

York Green Belt IS protected

As Labour become ever more desperate in their attempts to justify their “high growth” Local Plan, one mantra that keeps being repeated in that York “doesn’t have a Green Belt”.

In fact, York has had a (draft) Green belt for several decades. There are many planning decisions (important precedents) which revolved around development being refused because of its effect on the Green Belt.

The Green Belt received regional recognition – and protection – in the “Yorkshire and Humber Regional Spatial Strategy” (RSS) which was adopted in 2007.

Although the RSS was overtaken by the Localism Act (the present governments attempt to give more power to local communities), the York Green Belt boundaries were quite specifically recognised and protected when the new legislation was enacted.

Details can be found on this Government web site
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/117/note/made</a>

The government’s explanatory note reads,

“Section 109 of the Localism Act 2011(1) abolished the regional planning tier by repealing Part 5 of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009(2) (which only applied in relation to England). This includes the removal of the responsible regional authorities. Section 109 also made provision to revoke or partially revoke, by order, the eight existing regional strategies.

This Order makes use of those powers to partially revoke the regional strategy for Yorkshire and Humber, which comprises The Yorkshire and Humber Plan Regional Spatial Strategy to 2026 (“the RSS”) and the Regional Economic Strategy for Yorkshire & Humber 2006-2015. Policies in the RSS which relate to the Green Belt around the City of York are retained. The Key Diagram from the RSS is retained insofar as it illustrates the retained York Green Belt policies and the general extent of the Green Belt around the City of York. The Key Diagram can be found after page 214 of the RSS. A copy can be obtained from the Planning Directorate, Department for Communities and Local Government, Eland House, Bressenden Place, London, SW1E 5DU”

So unless and until it is changed the Green Belt around York remains protected.

Existing York Green Belt boundaries. click to enlarge

Existing York Green Belt boundaries. click to enlarge

The protected (draft) Green Belt boundaries are the same as those that Labour Councillors (and others) voted in favour of in the summer of 2011 (see map left)..

The word “draft” only disappears from the description of the York Green Belt when a Public Inquiry has been held and a government Minister has approved a new Local Plan.

In 2012 Labour withdrew the proposed Local Plan from the Public inquiry after doubts were raised about the credibility of the policies contained in it regarding out of City centre shopping facilities (post the Monks Cross planning decision).

The existing Green Belt boundaries continue to be protected.

Labour should stop trying to frighten residents into thinking otherwise.

Lendal bridge closure – new figures cast doubt on Council claims. Drivers face £80 hike in fuel costs

A Freedom of Information (FOI) request has revealed that an extra 300 vehicles an hour will be diverted onto Clifton Bridge, and its approach roads, when Lendal Bridge is closed to cars in August.

This is likely to have a much greater effect on congestion levels than the recently discontinued “on road” cycle lane at Clifton Green.

Lendal bridge traffic volumes click to enlarge

Lendal bridge traffic volumes click to enlarge

The biggest problems are likely to arise between 4:00pm and 5:00pm although the effect on weekend traffic volumes is currently unknown.

The FOI request asked the Council to reveal the forecast hourly volumes of traffic which would cross York’s 6 river bridges both before and after the Lendal closure.

The Council responded with estimates but failed to distinguish between volumes during school holidays and at other times of the year.

It also appears that the model they have used, to inform the Councils decision, could not provide an indication of the increases in average journey times that motorists would face.

The Council did, however, admit that junction queues on Foss Islands Road would add around 2 minutes to an off peak journey.

Further research has revealed that drivers could see their journey times double.

Lendal Bridge closure - extra costs for drivers click to enlarge

Lendal Bridge closure – extra costs for drivers click to enlarge

Those living closest to the City centre will face the longest increase in journey times. They will have to divert to use either the Clifton Bridge or the inner ring road.

It is estimated that a resident who drives from Monks Cross to the Railway Station and back – during the closure period – will incur additional fuel costs of £87 a year as a result of the 5 extra miles that they will complete each day

The Council spent around £300,000 a couple of years ago updating its traffic forecasting model. It is deeply worrying that the model apparently cannot provide more detailed information, about the effects on queue lengths, that a Lendal Bridge closure will have.

Even more worrying is the fact that it appears that the decision to advertise the plan, was taken without those responsible being given figures which indicated the additional time that journeys would take and the costs of the extra mileage that residents would incur.

It is expected that the proposal will be debated again by the full Council at its meeting on 18th July

Adoption numbers in York revealed

A freedom of Information request has revealed the number of children in York who have been adopted in recent years

• 2012/13 – 14 children adopted

• 2011/12 – 13 children adopted

• 2010/11 – 16 children adopted

• 2009/10 – 9 children adopted

• 2008/09 – 12 children adopted