York is trying to build a transport network fit for the future while hampered by Government funding cutbacks, says Lib Dem transport spokesperson Stephen Fenton in this column for The Press.

"We are all well aware of the challenge facing us in responding to the climate emergency and living, working and travelling in a more sustainable way.

York’s Liberal Democrats welcome that challenge, we are committed to producing a transport strategy that will help us take bold action, whilst bringing residents and businesses with us as we build a transport network that is fit for York’s future.

Many of us travel in many different ways – I cycle, walk, use a car and use the bus.

 The choices we all make are influenced by different factors, some within our control and some without. It’s vital however that people are supported to choose the options that best meet their needs, and the city’s needs.

York’s transport strategy will reflect those needs, it will have to support the delivery of the Local Plan and the delivery of our agreed strategies to combat climate change, drive economic development and support better health and wellbeing strategies.

The strategy will underpin our work to build a transport system fit for York’s future, making improvements to walking and cycling infrastructure, enhancing public transport and our highways network.

It is crucial that the strategy and subsequent interventions are able to deliver multiple benefits in the longer term, reducing congestion, improving air quality, supporting the economy and improving health.

The draft strategy consultation sets out a range of potential interventions.

These include the development of the park and ride network and other key bus routes, delivery of a large programme of measures to make walking and cycling safer and more attractive, measures to develop the orbital A1237 and A64 routes so that through traffic is diverted away from York city centre and village centres, and working with developers to ensure that the strategic sites being progressed through the Local Plan are delivered in ways consistent with high use of sustainable transport.

Alongside large city-wide improvements, we will remain focused on local improvements to footpaths and highways to address our residents’ concerns.

Potholes and uneven footpaths in residential streets may seem to some to be a low priority, but if you are cycling along those streets or walking or wheeling along those footpaths, they are very real problems.

However, our significant investment locally on highways maintenance has been undermined by cuts in national highway maintenance budgets.

York’s allocation of national road repair funding has been slashed by almost a third by the Conservative Government.

In 2020/21 York received a total of £4m towards highways maintenance from central government. This was cut by 29.5% (£1.2m) to £2.8m in 2021/22. This considerably smaller allocation has now been frozen for three years.

As repair costs are rising due to inflation and poor weather conditions, this freeze will mean a further real-terms cut every single year.

The loss of more than a million pounds a year is the equivalent of filling nearly 19,000 potholes. With a backlog of road repairs and skyrocketing labour and material costs, these cuts will make this work increasingly challenging.

The draft transport strategy is therefore set within this very challenging context.

We know that residents and businesses are up for the challenge of tackling congestion and improving our transport network, making our city an even better place to live.

It’s absolutely essential, however, that we take the city with us on the changes that need to be delivered.

It won’t always be easy – funding is likely to continue to be a challenge (even with devolution, should that happen) and there will be difficult conversations to be had.

So it is crucial that all residents and businesses are engaged in those discussions, and I would encourage everyone to get involved in the consultation on the draft strategy.

We’re starting from a good place, with a number of measures already underway that will make a difference across the city – from investing in carbon reduction measures to delivering EV charging facilities, expanding the electric bus network, supporting the use of public transport, implementing the clean air zone, improving cycle routes and securing funding for the dualling of the outer ring road and the station frontage scheme, which will be critical in enabling improvements to cycling and walking infrastructure within the ring road.

There is much more to do, and the Liberal Democrats are up for the challenge."