You might have noticed that the bus shelter opposite Richmond Avenue on Headingley has been replaced with a temporary stop. This happened because a vehicle crashed into the bus shelter which used to stand there, damaging it beyond repair.
The good news is that a new shelter will be installed at this location on July 27th. The work is being done by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, who are responsible for bus shelters in Leeds.
We are currently busy delivering our latest Focus leaflet in Headingley. You may have received yours already. If not, it should reach you soon.
Note: we aim to deliver a Focus leaflet to every household in Headingley, but of course some addresses are inaccessible (e.g. flats with entry codes), and sometimes we just run out! That’s why we put our stories online as well. You can browse through them by following our ‘focus stories’ category.
The Yorkshire Evening Post reports that First Bus drivers are planning to go on strike next Monday, 13th June. The strike will affect all bus routes in Leeds, so if you were planning to travel by bus that day, you may want to think about alternative plans.
Yorkshire Water are currently undertaking repair works to a collapsed sewer underneath Shaw Lane. Last week, they notified local residents that this would mean having to close off the end of Shaw Lane, where it meets Grove Lane, for about four weeks.
However, they have now discovered a new complication, which means that the work is now also affecting traffic on Grove Lane. In an update sent out yesterday they write:
Works began yesterday morning to carry out repairs to the collapsed sewer on Shaw Lane.
Unfortunately when undertaking the initial excavations the contractors discovered a large void underneath the carriageway which extended into/under the east bound lane of Grove Lane ( i.e. towards Meanwood).
Obviously this has changed things somewhat on site and as of this morning [i.e. Wednesday morning] the works have now encroached onto Grove Lane, narrowing it to below the required carriageway widths allowed to maintain two way traffic.
A priority system is now in place and seems to be working ok – however this type of traffic management will not be appropriate when the traffic flows increase during peak times.
Between 15.30-18.30 tonight [i.e. Wednesday] a trial will be undertaken using Stop/Go boards to try and manage traffic around the work site safely without causing major disruption
If the trial proves successful then this method will be used every morning and evening until the road is safe enough to allow two way traffic to flow unobstructed.
On the flip side, if it is clear that Stop/Go boards cannot manage traffic safely then we will have no choice but to close Grove Lane – one way (eastbound only).
This would mean that there will be no left or right turn into Grove Lane from Otley Road A660 but traffic traveling from Meanwood would be unaffected.
Yorkshire Water’s contractors will continue to work 7 days a week however it is now expected that these works will not be completed until mid/late June.
I hope this explains the difficult situation we find ourselves in and I will be sure to keep you all updated with any developments.
We will post any further information which they provide here.
The news has come today that the proposed Leeds NGT trolleybus scheme has been ruled ‘not suitable for development’ by the Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin.
The project attracted huge controversy after local communities protested that it could not deliver the improved journey times being promised, and would damage the local environment, local businesses and precious green space. The decision today follows an extensive public inquiry undertaken in 2014.
The £173m which the government would have contributed to the trolleybus scheme will still be retained for spending in Leeds, however. This means that the door is now open for a proper discussion about what transport solutions might actually work for our community: for example light rail, a tram or improvements to the existing bus services.
The full story is covered here by the Yorkshire Evening Post.
Here is another way of seeing which parts of Leeds and its transport network are currently affected by floods:
The map is taken from the Environment Agency website. You can visit the site yourself for live updates and detailed information on your area.
People all over West Yorkshire have experienced terrible flooding over the past twenty-four hours, bringing a grim end to their Christmas festivities. The water seems to have peaked now, but many areas of Leeds are still flooded, and road and rail transport are both badly disrupted.
The best advice is not to travel if you can avoid it. In particular, both West Yorkshire Police and the Environment Agency have advised drivers not to attempt to drive through flood water. Just 30cm of water is enough to float a car, causing a serious danger to life.
If you do need to travel, though, you can see a map of local road closures here. Road closures are marked with purple icons containing a red flag on a black background. You can also get up-to-date information from @LeedsTravelInfo on Twitter. Affected roads currently include:
For rail travel, you can see a list of affected services here. Affected lines include:
Our thoughts are with everyone affected, and we hope you are staying safe and dry as much as possible.
Recently we raised two sets of road safety concerns with the council’s Highways & Transportation department: bicycle accidents on Headingley Lane and cars going the wrong way along the one-way stretch of Alma Road.
Council officials have now responded on both issues, and have agreed that the concerns are real. The stretch of Headingley Lane between Hyde Park corner and Bainbrigge Road has seen 40 accidents in the past five years – a rate which is 276% the national average for a road of this kind. Meanwhile, traffic surveys on Alma Road in 2009 and 2012 recorded an average of 28 vehicles every day travelling in the wrong direction on the one-way stretch closest to the A660.
These are serious issues, then.
However, we noticed a common theme in the council officials’ responses. They stated that both roads are due to be affected by the NGT trolleybus route if the project is implemented, changing them substantially and improving their safety.
But a decision is yet to be made about the trolleybus. The results of a six-month-long public enquiry are not expected until later this year, or even early in 2016. And of course the eventual result may be that the scheme is abandoned.
It sounds to us as though the uncertainty around the trolleybus scheme is delaying measures which are needed now to improve street safety in Headingley. The local community is already strongly opposed to the trolleybus, and certainly shouldn’t have to wait until it is installed for Headingley’s streets to be made safer.
Penny Goodman and the Headingley Liberal Democrat team were out on the doorsteps in Spring Bank Crescent, The Poplars and Orville Gardens this evening. We spoke to residents about their local concerns, and asked them to fill out a survey showing their priorities for the area.
Residents in this part of Headingley were particularly concerned about Leeds Labour Council’s plans to build a trolley-bus along Headingley Lane, and the planned Wetherspoons’ pub in the former Elinor Lupton Centre.
Greg Mulholland MP has raised serious concerns about the trolley-bus scheme. He feels that Leeds should be free to spend the money ear-marked for the trolley-bus on the best transport system for the city – not a second-best option. Meanwhile, local campaigner Penny Goodman has called on Wetherspoons to clean up the Elinor Lupton Centre.
Several residents also commented on the number of traffic accidents which happen on Headingley Lane, particularly involving bicycles. We will be raising this with the council.