City of York Council has not put in place adequate mitigation measures for disabled people a year after blue badge holders were banned from driving into the city’s footstreets, a meeting heard.

Last month, a 2,700-strong petition from the Reverse the Ban coalition called for a rethink of the controversial decision that was made by the executive committee in November 2021.

The council has said it is following counter-terrorism advice in creating a secure zone around its busiest streets, but campaigners argue a solution could be found to allow access for those with disabilities who need their cars.

Scrutiny committee councillors on Monday discussed an update to the city centre access action plan, a series of measures that were agreed to help improve York for disabled people in light of the decision.

These included appointing a specialist access officer, creating more dropped kerbs and trialling a city centre shuttle bus.

Director of transport, environment and planning James Gilchrist said 10 of 23 actions had been completed, but committee chair Cllr Jonny Crawshaw said he was “disappointed” with the level of progress.

“We heard all of that a year ago and the administration still chose to go ahead and remove an exemption which has had a massive impact on thousands of people’s lives,” he added.

Jim Cannon, chair of York Older People’s Assembly, said: “Most of them haven’t happened and I think that is something which, in any ordinary organisation, you’d say was a disgrace.”

Anti-terrorism bollards are due to be installed next year and most non-essential vehicles are already banned from the footstreets, but Mr Gilchrist admitted that abuse of the rules was happening.

Several people at the meeting said they regularly saw banned vehicles, such as delivery vans, driving through the footstreets.

Cllr Crawshaw said: "I’m staggered. It totally blows a hole in the idea of it being a sterile zone.”

Mr Gilchrist said: “It’s a sterile zone by rules – the council doesn’t have powers to enforce that sterile zone until the physical measures are in place.

“The whole purpose of the hostile vehicle mitigation measures is that they are a total enforcement measure.”

Cllr Andrew Hollyer, Liberal Democrat, put it to Cllr Crawshaw that Labour had not explained how it would implement its policy of reversing the blue badge ban.

He said: “The point is the police and counter-terrorism advice is unequivocal – cars must be prevented from entering the footstreets.”

Cllr Crawshaw said: “Every other city centre in the country manages to have hostile vehicle mitigation that enables access to continue.”

Addressing Liberal Democrat members of the committee, Labour’s Cllr George Norman said: “The law is unequivocally clear – it says that you can’t discriminate against people without putting mitigation in place first.

“The simple truth is you don’t care enough about disabled people’s lives to spend a few quid on helping them live. I think that’s disgusting and I’m sickened to be a part of this council.”

Mr Gilchrist said £10,000 each was given last year to the Shopmobility and Dial-a-Ride services to improve awareness of their offer to disabled people.

He added that several points on the action plan are dependent on the council appointing its access officer, which is in the final stages of the recruitment process.