EXPERIMENTAL car-free days; greater priority to pedestrians, cyclists and public transport over cars; buses that run every 20 minutes; new bus hubs at York Railway Station, the hospital, and all Park & Ride sites; a weight limit on delivery lorries in the city centre; transhipment hubs; and greater use of electric delivery vehicles.

These are just some of the suggestions set out in a detailed new transport strategy for York that will be officially published on Friday by York Civic Trust .

To pay for it all, the Trust suggests the council may have to consider workplace parking levies and road pricing -ie a congestion charge. But this should not be done without 'comprehensive public engagement', it stresses.

The Trust says that if York is serious about meeting its target of being carbon neutral by 2030, traffic will need to be slashed by 70 per cent - which would mean reducing car use by a fifth by 2030.

York Civic Trust chair Stephen Lusty said the need for action was urgent. "For too long, York has put off the difficult decisions," he said. "We need to stop finding reasons for inaction."

York Press:

Stephen Lusty: 'We need to act now'

The Trust says the city council urgently needs to update York's 10-year-old Local Transport Plan. Prof Tony May, the chair of the Trust's Transport Advisory Group, hopes the new strategy, developed over the last year following a series of key workshops and the establishment of a Citizens' Transport Forum, will help the council do that.

The strategy includes both immediate 'fixes' which could be introduced by 2023, and longer-term suggestions.

Quick fixes suggested include experimental car-free days in the city centre to reduce traffic, and promotion of car clubs as an alternative to car ownership.

There should be better, continuous cycle routes on key main roads leading into the city, better traffic management to give buses, cyclists and pedestrians priority on roads, and improved access for disabled people and cargo bikes, the Trust says.

York Press:

Gridlock: a bus surrounded by traffic near York Hospital

Longer-term suggestions include:

  • all key bus services to run at least every 20 minutes during the day, with new bus hubs at the station, hospital and Park & Ride sites
  • redesign of the road network to encourage longer distance traffic to use the outer ring road
  • a possible rapid transit network to serve new developments
  • a 3.5 tonne limit on lorries in the city centre, transshipment sites on the edge of the city, and a move to electric or low-emission city centre delivery vehicles - including electric cargo bikes
  • the development of '20-minute communities' in which key facilities can be accessed on foot, by bike or by bus within 20 minutes of people’s homes

The Trust admits that solving York's traffic problems could be expensive.

The council should 'review additional funding streams, including workplace parking levies and road pricing', the Trust recommends. This, however, should not be done without comprehensive public engagement, it stresses.

Mr Lusty said: “If we can get the balance right, we can help ensure that York benefits from improvements to its environment, celebrates its heritage, ensures that all its citizens enjoy a healthy, rewarding lifestyle and achieves the economic vitality necessary to support all of these.

“But we do need to act now. We offer a coherent approach and a set of suggestions for what might be done. We hope that, in doing so, we can initiate discussion and encourage consensus on the council’s emerging Local Transport Plan.”

See the Trust's full strategy here