CYCLISTS and pedestrians were put at risk after workmen left pavements in a dangerous condition for two days, a York councillor has claimed.
Fishergate councillor Andy D’Agorne hit out at the “disgusting” lack of consideration for cyclists and pedestrians in Fulford Road by contractors who abandoned work at the start of last weekend.
He said tarmac reinstatement work had not been completed at the junction of Fulford Road and Broadway and Broadway West, leaving a two-centimetre trip hazard for pedestrians using the crossing.
“There was a section at the mouth of Broadway and on Fulford Road outbound where no cones were in place to alert cyclists to the hazard,” he said.
He said it was fortunate the weather had been fine and clear, as otherwise there would have been puddles and hidden uneven surfaces for anyone using the crossings at Broadway junction, crossing Moorland and Derwent Road or using the routes by bike. A two-metre long handled tamper with a square metal block on the end of it and chunks of broken kerb had also been left, which could have been used for anti-social activity but which Coun D’Agorne had placed out of reach behind works barriers. He said the area had been made safe earlier this week. A spokeswoman for City of York Council, which is creating new bus and cycle lanes and upgrading pedestrian crossings and improving junctions, said the authority fully shared Coun D’Agorne’s concerns.
She said officers were disappointed that, having raised similar issues with the contractor last Thursday, such problems had occurred again last weekend.
“The main contractor has agreed this was totally unacceptable,” she said. “It would appear the surfacing sub-contractor did not complete the works in a sequence that had been agreed and the main contractor then failed make the site safe for the weekend.
“The council has made its views very clear to the contractor, who has similarly taken appropriate steps with the sub-contractor to ensure there is no repeat occurrence.”
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