Be 'bold and visionary' - that's the message to City of York Council as it begins work on updating the city's local transport plan.

York Civic Trust has drawn up a raft of transport suggestions for updating the plan, which was produced in 2011.

They include:

  • Greater priority for pedestrians
  • Extending the pedestrian area, with a permit for disabled access
  • Developing a 'connected, continuous and safe' cycle network
  • Promotion of e-bike hire for longer journeys
  • More orbital bus services and a simple, value-for-money fare structure
  • Community hubs to support working from home
  • Greater support for electric vehicles and the purchase of smaller cars
  • Using traffic control and communications technology to discourage through traffic
  • Extending the Clean Air Zone to cover all vehicles.

The civic trust's 16-strong Transport Advisory Group (TAG) spent several months reviewing the 2011 transport plan before drawing up the suggestions. It also drew upon the work of the Citizens’ Transport Forum which was convened last year.

Transport Advisory Group chair Prof Tony May said: "Since the council’s local transport plan was produced a decade ago, much has changed, with electric cars, bikes and scooters, ride-hailing services such as Uber, increased online shopping and now more working from home.

"At the same time we have new commitments to carbon reduction and air quality. We have gone back to first principles and asked what sort of city we want, and how can transport best contribute. We have put forward our proposals, not to tell the council what it must do, but to stimulate a wider discussion on what it might do.”

Civic trust chair Stephen Lusty added: “York faces the twin challenges of carbon reduction and economic recovery, which will require significant changes in the way that we live, work and travel. Transport will be key to many of these changes.”

Andy D’Agorne, the council's deputy leader and executive member for transport, said: “The Council is committed to producing a new local transport plan, and publishing it for consultation at the start of 2022.

"We are very grateful to York Civic Trust for the advice which it has offered. We will be launching a two-month engagement programme, in which we hope to hear reactions to the Trust’s proposals, and other suggestions for the actions that we might take.”

Consultation on the local transport plan will form part of the city council's 'Our Big Conversation' consultation which will be launched soon. Our Big Conversation will cover transport, carbon reduction - and how York can recover economically from the Covid pandemic.

See york.gov.uk/OurBigConversation for more information.