making the news...

BBC Look North(Leeds) either today(060207)or tomorrow, The Guardian (prob 070207) and we were on BBC Radio York breakfast show and drivetime yesterday (050207)... all highlighting our problems. Thankyou all for all your support and emails...planning is expected to be put forward sometime in March...so may go quiet on the news from us front for a while. if anyone is interested in helping put up posters and the like, please contact me at dsb@nyloc.org. Meeting with Phil Willis MP next week. latest press release is as follows....

cheers again

dave and Richie

Press release...

TESCO PLANS WILL DELIVER DOUBLE WHAMMY TRAFFIC CHAOS SAY CAMPAIGNERS

Campaigners fighting plans for a massive Tesco at Harrogate’s busiest road junction, have called on the superstore giant to provide figures on the likely impact of its scheme on the town’s traffic.

Their calls follow a three day exhibition at New Park Nursery School at which company officials and traffic consultants were unable to tell people just how many cars and lorries the scheme would bring to the already gridlocked are if the plans go ahead.

Dave Burns and Richie Molloy of the ‘No to Tesco in Harrogate group’ say “it is astonishing to think that they couldn’t answer the single most important question that everyone was asking.”

“We understand that the Traffic Impact Assessment for the scheme is not yet complete – so ‘public consultation’ in the absence of this vital information was little more than a token gesture”

They added “ This is an 88, 000 sq ft store – bigger than ASDA – and with plans to open up to 24 hours, it will pull traffic from all parts of the Harrogate District to the junction of the two busiest roads that we have… with the total number of extra vehicles topping a massive 2 million in a given year

People on the North side of the town might like the idea of a Tesco – but we feel sure that if Tesco gains approval for its development at this totally unsuitable site, those who save a few pennies in the aisle will make everybody losers on the roads.”

Mr Burns also pointed out “ The proposed new roundabout on Skipton Road will be less than 100 metres from the existing Little Wonder roundabout and that means a double whammy for people travelling into Harrogate on either Ripon or Skipton Roads. There is even rumour they are trying to buy out the Transco land right next to the Little Wonder roundabout so they can put in an even bigger roundabout at this site.”

“Traffic heading along Skipton Road will have to give way to traffic turning out of tesco on the new roundabout and, when those Tesco vehicles quickly reach the second roundabout, the traffic heading in from Ripon will again have to give way to them. It will be an absolute nightmare for anyone driving in this area and we all know that because of Harrogate’s road system the impact of any major road junction has a knock on effect across the town”

The concerns about traffic include the siteing of a new goods entrance right outside New Park Nursery school and also raises fears for the safety of school children – with Saltergate, Coppice, New Park, st Joseph’s, Bilton Grange and Grove Road primary schools either on a route into the proposed site or close to it.”

Mr’s Burns and Molloy also said “ While it would be nice to have a Tesco somewhere in the Harrogate area, this is just such a wrong place for it and too big a price to pay simply to have another superstore in a town that already has an ASDA, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Waitrose and the Co-oP.”

Please add you support via our website www.stoptescoharrogate.blogspot.com