Councillor action secures safer pedestrian route for Badger Hill residents

Above: Fiona is actually standing where
residents previously wouldn't have been
able to walk.

A well-used footpath in the residential area of Badger Hill has become clearer and safer, thanks to the actions of Hull Road Labour councillors, council officers and the Community Payback scheme.
The path, running along the Badger Hill side of Field Lane, had become the main footpath between Windmill Lane, other Badger Hill roads and the new Heslington East university campus. This was following highway reconstruction which saw the other side of the road becoming a dedicated cycle path.

However, seasons of neglect had led to overgrowth of a boundary hedge and composting of dead leaves – in some places cutting the width of the path by nearly two thirds. This created a major safety issue for elderly residents and parents with pushchairs as they fought for space with an increased level of pedestrians to the campus and wayward cyclists not using the dedicated path.

Following numerous complaints from residents, local Labour councillors for Hull Road ward, Coun. Fiona Fitzpatrick and Coun. Neil Barnes took action.

Before

Coun. Fiona Fitzpatrick said: “This footpath along Field Lane has always been well-used by residents. But due to highway reconstruction for the new campus and changes to bus routes, the path has become increasingly important in recent years, especially for the elderly for whom access to a bus stop is vital. It is an equally important path for school pedestrian traffic. However, the path has gradually been taken over by overgrowth and composting leaves.

“That is why we are delighted that our call for action has led to the council’s Public Realm staff and a team from Community Payback taking on the job and making it a safer path for everyone. Council officers accepted my invitation to visit the area and realised how neglected it was, then took urgent action to address it”.

After!

Coun. Neil Barnes said: “The state of the path has long been a bugbear for residents, so I’m glad that Coun. Fitzpatrick and I were able to make this local action count and show residents that a Labour Council still works to provide a valuable service to them in the face of devastating local government cuts imposed by the Coalition.

“We want to say thank you to the teams involved for their hard work in addressing this problem.  We welcome ideas from residents about other areas in Hull Road ward that Community Payback might be able to make a difference to.”