MOTORISTS and buses will soon have to share a larger stretch of a major route into York.

Work is underway in Tadcaster Road as part of a £1.4 million travel improvement scheme which has seen a traffic island has been installed close to Knavesmire Road.

It marks the spot where buses and motorists previously began to have their own lane into the city.

Now motorised traffic passes St George’s Place it will do so in one continuous lane, instead of two, to the turn for York racecourse.

A spokesperson for the council said: “Within the Tadcaster Road Improvements Scheme, the bus lane is being omitted in only one section, from St George’s Place down to Knavesmire Road.

“This is to allow for a 1.5 metre cycle lane and the proposed new pedestrian crossing which will be situated north-east of the junction with Knavesmire Road.

“The bus lane is currently being widened by 1.5 metres to 4.5 metres from where it starts north-east of the Knavesmire Road junction down to the section before Dalton Terrace where it reverts back to the existing layout.

“From this point on, the proposed bus lane will remain the same as at present and no further changes are proposed.”

York Press: A cycle lane will replace the current bus and cycle laneA cycle lane will replace the current bus and cycle lane (Image: Kevin Glenton)

Travel improvements are part of a full scheme, implemented by City of York Council (CYC) and West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) includes a further £5 million of funding from the government to keep the road free from maintenance for the next ten years.

The plan outlined a need to balance current and future uses of Tadcaster Road with more active travel options including cycling and walking.

The scheme is broken up into nine areas and includes footpath surfacing, road markings, traffic island modifications, drainage connections and localised drain repairs.

Consultations were held on the full scheme in August and September 2021, with drop-in sessions in November 2022 and January of this year.

These were in addition to 2,816 letters being sent to residents and during the consultation period over 500 surveys were completed.

WYCA produced a consultation document in January of last year which included analysis of a survey about the Tadcaster Road/Knavesmire Road area.

Half those surveyed agreed with the decision to widen cycle lanes by removing splitter islands and removing the bus lane, whilst 38 percent strongly disagreed or disagreed.

Open-text responses asking for additional comments received fewer than 75, with the three most popular themes being:

  • Concerns the changes would cause more congestion and increase journey times by motorised cars
  • Not in favour of the shared use space for pedestrians and cycles
  • Overall disagreement with crossing plans

Councillor Stephen Fenton, whose Dringhouses & Woodthorpe Ward abuts St George’s Place said: “The Tadcaster Road project team have held a number of well-attended drop-in sessions at St Edward’s Church in recent months at which local residents and businesses were able to view the plans and ask questions about the scheme.

“I haven’t received any queries about the new road layout at Mount Vale, but if anyone would like to raise any comments or concerns I would encourage them to contact the project team directly at tadcasterroad@york.gov.uk “

City of York Council say the works on Tadcaster Road are set to be completed by September.