A few days ago North Yorkshire County Council were succesful in winning £1.6 million to be spent on sustainable transport initiatives in Harrogate and Knaresborough. The original bid was for £3.9 million and proposed a range of initiatives including upgrades to some of the main routes into Harrogate to make them more cycle friendly.
This is great and welcome news, but obviously as the bid has only been funded in part, some of the projects proposed will not now go ahead. Cycle Harrogate hopes as many as possible of the cycling projects will be implemented, realistically though we may need to lobby for one or two.
The bid involved proposed work on the roads to: Hornbeam Park, Otley Rd/Harlow Hill, Leeds Road, Whetherby Rd and the road between Knaresborugh and Harrogate, you know the one we have been going on about for the last few months. Work was scheduled over the next three financial years.
Wheeel Easy and The Harrogate Cycling Group where involved in the bid process and where named as stakeholders on the bid document. They will both want to have input into the negotiations that will be going on as interested bodies jostle for funding. If as looks likely our Knaresborough Road proposals are going to be implemented, what do commuting and utility cyclists in Harrogate want us to lobby for next?
Here are the bid choices
1. Completion of cycle provision between Knaresborough and Harrogate.2. Cycle Provison on the Otley Road up Harlow Hill towards Harlow Carr.
3. Better cycle provison on Leeds road as it enters town.
4 Upgrades to the road from Woodlands to Hornbeam Park.
5 Cycle provision on Whetherby Road past the hostpital and down to the Showground.
All of these are clearly important, but we started as a single issue campaigning group and we think our efforts are best focused on getting things done one at a time. We also want to represent the views of ordinary people in Harrogate (and Knaresborough) who use their bikes as part of their everday lives. So what do you want? We are about getting bums on seats. Where do you want your bums? Either leave a comment on this post or get involved on twitter or facebook
image CJ Isherwood
Ideally you would want all of them upgraded. Practically I believe the most used and dangerous are 1 and 4
ReplyDeleteMan, all 5 of these would work very well together... A shame its unlikely.
ReplyDeleteMy vote goes out to number 2. Theres plenty of commuting cyclists who work at the top of Otley Road, and also a number of Gym visiters cycle up that way. You also have the 2 schools that break off from it who are going to see a benefit. I choose not to cycle up Otley Road at present, much prefer the back roads, I stay alive that way :)
Number 1 is also a strong candidate if this involves cycling provision up the length of Knaresborough Road, specifically Starbeck to the Hospital.
Number 3 I dont see this benefiting anyone more than the other 4 options.
Number 4 would be great but I feel what they have is better than 1 and 2 currently do.
Number 5, same as above.
Thanks for the comments please keep them coming. All are getting some love both here and on facetwitterbook. No strong front runner so far. Trouble is as Gio says we need them all.
ReplyDeleteNumber 2 for me also.
ReplyDeleteOtley Rd is currently very dangerous.
Tourist route to RHS.
Lots of businesses at Caredale Park/Central House area.
There is already a good path that can be amended.
For some bizarre reason there is about 5m of cycle path near the church on top of hill.
For selfish reasons, 2. Otley road as I use it regularly.
ReplyDeleteFollowed by 1. where I've had a couple of collisions with cars.