West Bulls junction and Service 3 again

John Fareham and John Abbott report that East Riding of Yorkshire Council have agreed to look into the possibility of remodelling the West Bulls junction so as to permit the passage of Stagecoach service 3 on its way out and thereby to allow for the possibility of the bus ceasing to travel via Hotham Road North.

This is not by any means a quick fix, as East Riding themselves have been prompt to point out, but it is light at the end of the tunnel and we would like to thank our Conservative Group colleagues on East Riding Council for their part in getting us this far. Various local residents have also pulled their weight, as of course have we, and we will of course report on any progress that has been made as and when we hear about it.  Relations between their transport officers and ours improved considerably when it was drawn to their attention that the roadworks up the road were not a purely East Riding consideration and this too may have helped get us this far.  Things have certainly improved since ERYC were hiding behind “accident statistics” of highly limited relevance; the basic principle that something needs to be done, given the unsuitability of Hotham Road north as part of the bus route, would appear to have been accepted. It therefore remains to resolve the technical issues, such as they may be, draw up a scheme and get it approved; we have of course asked East Riding to attend to these matters as expeditiously as they can.

Cottingham Road slurry sealing

John Fareham and John Abbott report that a plan for slurry sealing Cottingham Road pavements will be put into effect between now and July 2017.

According to papers for the September meeting of Wyke Area Committee, this plan is currently at the stage of being priced and no exact start date has been agreed, but of course, as soon as we do know when the work is due to start we will let local residents know. This will not of course be the first such scheme to be undertaken – a stretch further along has already been done – but in the light of the pressure we have applied over the years for more to be done to maintain acceptable standards of paving around here, we feel this initiative is very much to be welcomed.”

Bricknell Avenue resurfacing

John Fareham and John Abbott report that an additional carriageway resurfacing project to do the road surface between Strathcona Avenue and the City boundary has been formulated as a consequence of consultations with East Riding Council about the work they are currently undertaking.

Work is due to commence on site during October2016- we do not have a specific start date yet but we will pass it on when we do.  Papers for the September meeting of Wyke Area Committee confirm that the officers have been talking to their East Riding colleagues, which we very much welcome in the light of the ongoing conversation we have been having with East Riding about the West Bulls junction and the implications of this for public transport.  We continue to receive comments from local residents about issues relating to traffic vibration; we hope this new scheme will, limited as it may be in scope, be a useful contribution to reducing  that problem.

Commonwealth Homes pest control

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the maggots and bluebottles that have been causing problems in Commonwealth Homes should be dead by now.

Our latest information is that the food waste on which the insects and prospective insects have been feeding has been removed and, in its absence, the insects should only have been able to survive for seven to ten days.  The warden has been made aware of the circumstances and, if no further food is prepared in the communal area, what has in effect been an underfloor maternity hospital for creepy-crawlies should be closed down, hopefully for good. Of course insects cannot be totally relied on never to return, but one does rather hope they will take the view that richer pickings are to be had elsewhere and make their movements accordingly. If, however, they do not then we and the officers will work once more to resolve the problem.

Bricknell Avenue road works

John Fareham and John Abbott report that Phase 1 of the East Riding Council roadworks on Bricknell Avenue was due to start on Monday 12^th September and Phases 1 and 2 were due to continue until Friday 16^th September.

What these works – or this part of the overall plan for the works — means is that Stagecoach’s Service 9 bus will be able to head into Hull as usual but not to get past the roadworks on the way out.  This means that the dates given above will be the principal dates for the 9 to be diverted, once an hour and in the mornings, afternoons and early evenings only, via Hotham Road North on its way to Cottingham.  We realise that this is not particularly welcome, but as previously stated, Stagecoach were more than a little reluctant to consider the alternative of sending the bus as far down as Fairfax Avenue to take an alternative detour.

Goodfellowship refuse collecting noise

John Fareham and John Abbott are working to resolve issues with very early-morning noise from refuse contractors visiting the Goodfellowship public house.

We have received complaints from local residents to the effect that refuse lorries have been arriving at unreasonably early hours of the morning.  We have therefore contacted the refuse company we were given to understand were still servicing the pub and asked them not to call so early.  They told us that another company had taken over the contract and told us who they were; we have also now contacted the replacement refuse providers and asked them to be considerate of local residents’ needs in the matter of when they pick up rubbish and whether their arrival acts as an unwelcome early alarm call.

Bricknell Estate bus provision

John Fareham and John Abbott report that Hull City Council are withdrawing funding for Stagecoach Service 9 to cover Bricknell Estate but that negotiations are under way to provide an alternative off peak service.

As we previously reported, contract negotiations have been under way for a lower-cost bus subsidy provision.  This has resulted in the contract being awarded to East Yorkshire, but the contract does not cover Service 9. Officers have therefore begun negotiations with both local bus operators about diverting other services to cover Bricknell Estate during the daytime so as to provide continuity of service.  We for our part have emphasised the urgency of doing so in order to ensure continuity of public transport provision for the numerous elderly residents who need there to be a bus service of whatever kind to get them to the shops, the doctor’s surgery or other important destinations.

Ancaster Avenue fly tipping

John Fareham and John Abbott have arranged to have motor vehicle parts that had been fly tipped on Ancaster  Avenue cleared away.

Fly tipping is of course against the law – thought perhaps it is less reprehensible to leave something on the grass verge pending its imminent disposal – so when fairly substantial parts of a car that had clearly, from the state of them, been damaged beyond economic repair were dumped on the grass verge in Ancaster Avenue, local residents drew them to our attention and asked for their removal.  We of course then referred the matter to the officers who discussed the matter and have, at the time of writing, arranged between themselves to go and get rid of them. This may or may not be an isolated instance – the question comes to mind of where the rest of that car may be – but whenever we find fly tipping going on, or have it drawn to our attention, we report it and the officers, who like rubbish just dumped on the pavement about as much as we do, will usually take the necessary steps to get the rubbish shifted.

Service 9 vehicle allocation

John Fareham and John Abbott have been liaising with Stagecoach to try and reduce the disruption caused to local residents by the passage of service 9 via Burniston Road outbound and Langdale Avenue inbound.

There are those elsewhere on the route –the frail and elderly, for example-for whom the service 9, in and of itself, is a potentially vital lifeline.  The recent issues over rerouting the 9 in connection with the roadworks on Bricknell Avenue have brought that sharply into focus.  We have however been holding discussions with Stagecoach as to whether it might be possible, given that bus magazines regularly report buses being transferred between one part of Stagecoach and the other,  to find smaller, lighter and less noisy vehicles more suited for use on the 9 in general and on the tight turn into Langdale Avenue in particular.  They have now undertaken to consult with their senior colleagues elsewhere to see if it is possible to find such vehicles elsewhere in the Stagecoach fleet and, if there are, to transfer them in.