Harrogate Lib Dems criticise council for ‘failures’ on town centre traffic after vote on £11.2m Gateway project

Speaking after she chaired a crucial vote on the future of the controversial £11.2 million Harrogate Gateway project, Coun Pat Marsh said the council’s strategy was too "piecemeal” to achieve any real progress on active travel measures.

"The town needs safe cycle routes across the whole town rather than isolated bits of routes that are not joined in any way like Beech Grove, Otley Road and the Gateway scheme.

"The lack of long-term investment in the town centre and any meaningful strategic active travel plan for the Harrogate and Knaresborough Constituency means that projects like the Gateway are seen as isolated piecemeal vanity projects by the council’s administration rather than a solution that links improvements in traffic flow throughout the town, leading to significant carbon emission reductions.”

Last Friday’s meeting at Harrogate Civic Centre saw angry complaints by business groups and residents about the Government-funded plans to make the town centre more accessible to cyclists and pedestrians.

Among the proposals are making Station Parade single-lane to add cycle and bus lanes and part-pedestrianising James Street.

Acting CEO of Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce, Martin Mann, said the project would hurt town centre businesses who are struggling to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.

William Woods, representing the Independent Harrogate group of traders, said 12 months or more of construction could “push many businesses over the edge”.

He added: “If you really care about Harrogate you must reject this scheme and look at other options.”

But Jemima Parker, chair of green group Zero Carbon Harrogate, said the town should emulate other urban centres across the country who have implemented active travel schemes to transform their town centres using money from the Government’s Transforming Cities Fund.

She said: “We need to grasp the vision of a low carbon future where shared and active travel complement a less-polluted and congested Harrogate.”

Coun Marsh argued the Gateway plans as they stood had been mishandled.

"Of particular concern is the level of poor consultation and lack of any business impact assessment for the project,” she said

"North Yorkshire Council needs to acknowledge their mistakes and learn from them.

"Many residents and businesses put forward positive suggestions for improving the scheme.

"There is little evidence that any of this was listened to and actioned.”

The end of a stormy three-hour meeting saw the Harrogate Gateway project passed by ten votes to three after Lib Dem councillor for Coppice Valley and Duchy, Peter Lacey, proposed a motion that backed the project going ahead but with with three conditions:

1 That “genuine concerns” of residents and business groups are listened to.

2 That local councillors have a “meaningful role” in the implementation of the scheme.

3 That a “rigorous monitoring system” to examine the scheme’s potential impact on traffic, environment and business is put in place.

The Harrogate and Knaresborough Constituency committee also called on Tory-controlled North Yorkshire Council to engage with residents and local business owners to ensure their concerns were listened to.

And it requested an active role in the project going forward with a full report on progress coming to the Area Committee’s Autumn meeting.

Coun Pat Marsh, Liberal Democrat Chair of North Yorkshire Council’s Area Constituency Committee, blamed the town’s reservations over active travel measures such as Gateway on North Yorkshire Council for what she said was a failure to create a joined-up strategy to reduce traffic congestion or encourage a switch to cycling.

"There is nothing in the Gateway scheme that will reduce traffic volumes in the town centre to any meaningful degree,” said Coun Marsh.

"The unwillingness of North Yorkshire Council to consider a park and ride scheme for Harrogate further highlights the lack of strategic thinking by the council.

"The council's recent record in failed Levelling Up and active travel funding bids to central government leads to Lib Dems questioning the ability of North Yorkshire Council to deliver this project on time and to budget.”

Appearing at last Friday’s meeting was North Yorkshire Council’s head of major projects and infrastructure, Richard Binks, who outlined what he the council believes are the benefits of the Harrogate Gateway project.

And Tory Councillor Michael Harrison, who sits on the council’s decision-making executive, said councillors were elected to make tough decisions that weren’t always popular with the general public.

North Yorkshire Council’s executive will now meet on May 30 to decide whether to put forward a business case for the scheme.