By one part of the railway museum, looking across towards the other, Leeman Road

Recently we’ve had a quick visit to Cinder Lane, and then to Leeman Road, following the progress of work on the York Central site, where demolition work has started, following approval of the planning applications for the development. As I mentioned previously, there’s been a public inquiry on the proposed ‘stopping up’ (partial closure) of Leeman Road. The inquiry was underway while I was writing the above, and has now finished.

I’m a bit late to all of this, for various reasons, but since I have read more about it I wanted to add a few more notes/thoughts, in this ‘resident’s record of York and its changes’, as it brings together elements of quite a few things I’ve written about many times in the past. But I’m trying to break it up into pages of reasonable length. (They’ll all be tagged YorkCentral.)

York Central, in general

The fact that the site clearance work has started on York Central has been presented as significant progress on this large and complex ‘brownfield’ site. A report prepared for a meeting of the city council’s Executive on 22 April states that ‘the delivery of York Central’ has been a council priority for well over two decades. And that now

York Central has moved from being a long held ambition to a current reality.
– (source (PDF)

It continues:

The enabling works to prepare the site have now commenced. IP1 works are underway to demolish the former Unipart, Freightliner and Concrete Works buildings, site clearance and track lifting ahead of IP2 works to construct the access spine road and Boulevard, add the pedestrian deck to the Severus Bridges, build the access bridge over the East Coast Main Line( ECML) reroute utilities and undertake works to Millennium Green. Despite the challenges we still face with the ongoing Covid 19 pandemic, we are poised to finally deliver on the city’s long held ambition to develop York Central.

That sets it in context. Clearly a huge amount of work has gone into these plans, from so many people, for so long.

A major part of it all is the redevelopment of the railway museum. (Which we used to call the National Railway Museum.)

I have to say that it was clear to me, when walking around with a camera recently, and looking at it more carefully, how a lot of this area around the railway museum could be said to look quite ‘tired’ and dated now. Kind of 1970s meets 19th century with a road through the middle. Though I wouldn’t have thought about it much if it weren’t for the radical plans to change it all, as part of the York Central development.

Vision 2025 – Railway Museum plans

The museum has ambitious plans as it approaches its 50 year anniversary (in 2025). According to its website the museum is

poised to become the cultural anchor—the heartbeat—of the York Central development

To do this it envisages a new Central Hall.

Sensitively and sustainably designed by UK-based architects Feilden Fowles, the building will reference historic locomotive ’roundhouses’. Clad in recycled copper and with high, glazed ceilings with timber radials, the building will be spectacular inside and out, creating a world class-welcome.

Design for Central Hall, Railway Museum, by Feilden Fowles

This isn’t ‘news’, but when it was news, I think many of us may have been distracted by other things. Now I’m paying proper attention, I can see that it’s a splendid-looking thing, References roundhouses and includes recycled copper? Fantastic. Sounds ‘right up my street’, as they say.

But it isn’t literally up my street, and if it was I might have looked at things in a different way. Indeed have been trying to look at things in a different way, in more detail, because the building of this structure means the closure of part of a long-established route.

This new Central Hall

will span the road which dissects the museum

says the railway museum website. I think that should be bisects? – but anyway … when it says ‘span’ it means close part of.

The road was there for quite a while before the museum was, and, as previously mentioned, along it there’s some housing, where quite a few people live, and at the end of it there’s quite a large area of housing, where rather a lot of people live, and not surprisingly, they’re all rather reliant on their route into town, which has been there for quite a long time. Hence the campaign against the closure of the part of Leeman Road the museum wants to acquire for its planned redesign.

I don’t drive, and don’t generally have much reason to travel along the length of Leeman Road, unless I’ve walked up that way to take photos for this website. I’ve been aware of the campaign to oppose the closure. I didn’t really want to spend time on looking into it in further detail, but did, and recognise how many hours the local residents and local councillors must have put into it, to be presenting their case at the public inquiry recently.

As the plan I included on the previous page shows, there is to be a new road through the York Central development, and pedestrian and cycle routes intended to replace the closed part of Leeman Road. Which would mean, eventually, when it’s built, less traffic wending its way through the areas of housing on Leeman Road, as it does now.

It could be said that those who are opposed to it are just ‘resistant to change’, or opposing necessary progress, and that those who have campaigned against it are just thinking of their own interests, and that we should be grateful to have this nationally important/world-class museum in our city and do all we can to accommodate it.

But … this impartial observer, trying to understand the detail, can understand why those who oppose it so strongly have opposed it. The ‘devil’s in the detail’, as they say. I can’t cover all the detail here, but see the previous page for a helpful clear plan showing which part of the road this relates to.

There is apparently to be pedestrian access through the museum when it’s open, intended to replace the direct route that Leeman Road currently takes, but outside of opening hours it means going the long way round. And it seems reasonable to challenge the closure of a long-established right of way.

A recent document (PDF) made available as one of many connected with the public inquiry is a legal agreement on the proposed ‘permissive’ route through the museum grounds. There’s a long list of conditions, (including no spitting … a bit 19th century?), and possibly having to have your bag searched. That’s a bit different from the current open road that we can all at present progress down quite freely.

The issue is now with experts who have listened to the various viewpoints and will make their decision in due course.

Update: 23 Sept 2021

Local media reports today:

Great news – or a huge two-fingers to York? Leeman Road will close, rules Transport Secretary (York Mix)

Grant Shapps gives green light to close Leeman Road in York (York Press)

The post Railway Museum plans and Leeman Road appeared first on York Stories.

Detail of proposed routes around and through the railway museum

I was pleased to find the document above, on this link (ref CD1.7 in the list). I had been a bit confused about what ‘the closure of Leeman Road’ entailed, exactly.

Not the whole of it, clearly. It’s the section denoted by the blue dashes.

It’s still very important — part of the York Central redevelopment — and clearly very controversial, and it’s made me think a lot — not for the first time — about many things connected with the York as we’ve known it and the York it might be becoming.

While I was compiling the recent pages on Cinder Lane and Leeman Road, a public inquiry was underway, on this proposed ‘stopping up’ of the road, as it’s termed.

The inquiry has now finished, but from the documents made available online because of it I was able to find the helpful plan above.

I watched a bit of the livestream of the inquiry, on its final day, and looked at some of the accompanying documents, and wanted to get together on here a bit of information on this. Well, I say ‘wanted to’, I mean I felt like I should. It’s an important thing, but it’s also rather long-winded and detailed. More later perhaps. Credit to those who have waded through the detail and taken it to the public inquiry stage.

Update – I’ve now added more information, see Railway Museum plans and Leeman Road.

Update: 23 Sept 2021

Local media reports today:

Great news – or a huge two-fingers to York? Leeman Road will close, rules Transport Secretary (York Mix)

Grant Shapps gives green light to close Leeman Road in York (York Press)

The post Public inquiry on closure of (part of) Leeman Road appeared first on York Stories.

Entrance to Marble Arch tunnel

Let’s go for a little walk … not under the moon of love, but down the Marble Arch tunnel on Leeman Road.

You can always rely on these pages to take you to some glamorous and exotic places.

Though so much of York is prettified and gentrified, this place remains proper ‘gritty’ and grubby. Already unwelcoming, now with one of those bossy signs added for good measure. I’m wondering if this old pedestrian tunnel under the railway lines can ever be enhanced.

Once you’re in it, or rather when you’re nearly at the other end of it, it does have a certain photogenic quality, if the sun’s in the right place and shining off its white glazed bricks.

In the Marble Arch tunnel

I had a quick walk down this way one sunny evening a few weeks back, 19 April, to see what had been occurring in terms of the demolition work on the York Central site.

If you turn left after the tunnel there’s an alleyway, Cinder Lane, which cuts through round the edge of the York Central site. I’ve walked up here a few times before.

It still grows a good crop of wildflowers, in crevices in its old brickwork.

Wild things in the wall, Cinder Lane

It still has the Cinder Lane shed. Which I’ve admired many times, lovely wonky old thing.

Recently, in reports submitted as part the York Central redevelopment, I’ve seen it referred to as the Fire House.

Old shed – known as the Fire House, apparently

It’s considered interesting enough to keep, though it seems it’s going to be dismantled and moved elsewhere.

This small timber shed off Cinder Lane appears on maps of 1930s but may be older. Known to Network Rail as the Fire House it is currently assumed to have stored a fire engine.

It is recommended the shed should be carefully recorded and dismantled for re-erection elsewhere in York Central. Suggested locations might include the Foundry Yard or Central Park.

– York Central design guide

I wonder how this will work. It looks like it might collapse into itself as soon as one part is lifted from it, but then I’m no expert. I do recall though reading of other historic structures removed in the past that were supposed to be reused, and which weren’t, perhaps because they got stuck in a corner in storage somewhere and forgotten about.

Anyway, nice to know that I wasn’t alone in finding this wooden shed rather interesting.

If we continue along Cinder Lane, the footbridge over the railway gives a view I’m rather fond of. I’ve included a similar photo in the past, but went to have a look again, before it changes.

Former wagon repair works/Freightliner

Several disused buildings are to be demolished, and this is one of them.

I wonder if the structures built in its place will have the same kind of charm, in the evening sunlight. I wonder if they’ll block the view out from here towards Holgate and Poppleton Road school. Probably. And the view back this way, which I always appreciate, when cycling back from Acomb and turning into Water End, with railway buildings and railway lines and the Minster in the distance.

Anyway, time to head back to look at York Central from another angle. Appreciating, on the way, a wild plant that still hangs on in here, on the top of the wall, by the rusty old railings.

Herb Robert, Cinder Lane

Back in 2012 I included a photo of it, here in Cinder Lane, but back then I didn’t know what it was called. I now know that it’s Herb Robert, and that it likes growing in my back garden. In more favourable conditions, its leaves are green.

My walk continued along part of Leeman Road. More to follow. Possibly tomorrow even. Maybe a ‘May daily’ …

The post Cinder Lane, the Fire House, and York Central appeared first on York Stories.

Floodwater on Rawcliffe Meadows and Clifton ings, 21 Jan 2021

The ings are doing their thing, as the city does its best to deal with another deluge.

Weather conditions permitting, I’m trying to get out for a walk most days, as it feels more important than ever to get exercise and fresh air, rather than sitting inside staring at a screen and getting drawn in to ‘doomscrolling‘.

Today, in welcome sunshine, I headed out of town up Shipton Road, as I often do. Having seen photos online of the flood levels in the city centre I was curious to see how the situation compared with last February (as mentioned in my 2020 review of the year).

The Clifton and Rawcliffe area of York, my local area, is up river on the Ouse, and the land here on the ings by the river Ouse takes in a lot of water, which therefore means less water down river, in the city centre.

It’s not the focus of a lot of attention, as most images in the media focus on the height of the floodwaters by the city centre bridges, or King’s Staith. This time, as always, it’s important to see different perspectives.

It wasn’t as bad as I was expecting, down here on the flood bank. The water levels at around 3.30pm, today:

Rawcliffe Meadows, from the flood bank near Shipton Road, late afternoon, 21 Jan 2021

Compared to the same stretch of flood bank (from a slightly different angle) back in February 2020:

Rawcliffe Meadows, from the flood bank near Shipton Road, late afternoon, 24 Feb 2020

Many people were out walking, or running, many more people than I used to see here, and dogs in particular seemed to be enjoying the shallower areas of water.

From the flood bank, Rawcliffe Meadows, 21 Jan 2021

When I walked along here in February last year the volume of water and the speed (and sound) of it was quite striking/threatening, and I wanted to get off the flood bank as quickly as I could. Today, in bright sunshine, in a welcome escape from the general miseries of the current time, it felt quite different.

Another comparison – looking back the other way, pictured below, today and last February. On the left is the water from the overflowing Ouse, on the right a reservoir area that Blue Beck runs through.

Water on both sides, but not as much as in Feb 2020

2020, February, reservoir basin and river Ouse waters

I arrived back home feeling quite cheered up/warmed/optimistic – as much as it’s possible to be, in the current situation. Everyone else I passed was I hope benefiting from it too.

Then, back at my desk, checking on the flood updates etc, I saw warnings not to walk on the ings in this area, because of overtopping of the defences. I’d just got back from walking along some of them and had seen no breaches, nothing near.

It probably needs to be clarified that there are two lines of floodbanks in the Clifton/Rawcliffe area. One is right by the river – the flood bank that has had some incursion from the river over the top of it, today, apparently.

The other is the one I walked along this afternoon, the one that is pictured above. It’s some distance from the river. As I’ve been here a while I know the best access points that aren’t a sea of mud. I wouldn’t recommend visiting if you don’t.

Flood levels hadn’t quite peaked at the time of writing. But hopefully enough spare capacity here and elsewhere to contain most of the flow.

A lot more could be said, and probably needs to be, but more on that story later perhaps.

. . . . .

These pages have been supported by, and powered by, your virtual coffees. More about the background to all this is on this page.

The post The ings do their thing: Clifton and Rawcliffe appeared first on York Stories.

Scarborough Bridge, 4 Dec 2018

I know I’ve written about Scarborough Bridge before (a few times), but not since it officially opened, apart from a brief mention in Sunday’s wander. Looking through December photos from various years past I was reminded that on this day a mere one year ago I took the photo above, and wrote about how the long-awaited work had begun on the bridge.

A year on I wanted to include just a few photos and thoughts in recognition of the fact that the bridge is now officially open and in use, and that I’ve now been across it on foot and by bike.

Obviously there have been many photographs of the new bridge deck, on here and in many other places, highlighting its width compared to the older bridge, or showing its striking ironwork from the side, highlighting the differences from before. Also interesting though is how the bridge as a whole doesn’t look radically different from before when viewed from a bit more distance, and more head-on, rather than from the side, close-up.

Scarborough Bridge from the riverside at the end of Marygate, 1 Dec 2019

This seems worth mentioning as I recall some concerns expressed that the new bridge deck might look jarring or intrusive when viewed from other viewpoints, such as Lendal Bridge. It doesn’t. The visible difference is that the large stone blocks that previously added height on both sides have been removed. That seems like no great loss, as they always looked black and grubby, and seemed a bit overbearing.

Though I looked at many documents and watched the work as it progressed, it was hard to picture, until we could actually use the bridge, how it would work together, the rail lines and pedestrian/cyclist part, in terms of different levels and proximity. It works like this:

On Scarborough Bridge, 30 Aug 2019

There’s a real sense of linkage to the station now. There clearly always was, if you were on a train, as it’s always been a bridge carrying railway lines into the station. But as a pedestrian that sense of linkage wasn’t apparent on the old bridge. As was mentioned earlier, but let’s remind ourselves.

On the old bridge:

The pedestrian viewpoint from Scarborough Bridge (as it was), looking towards the station, 26 Nov 2018

And the new:

From the new Scarborough Bridge, looking towards the station, 30 Aug 2019

It’s so obvious it should be like this, and should have been like this a long time back.

In terms of the details, it has some nice metalwork, and paving.

Scarborough Bridge, details, station side, 1 Dec 2019

I have to mention that the slope to it, on the Marygate side, is rather different from the illustrations we were shown when the plans were approved, where there was a long straight slope starting quite some distance back, by the side of the car park. What there is, now the work has been completed, is a much shorter and steeper slope with quite a sharp bend onto the path by the car park. I assume there were good reasons for this change of plan, and I hope it isn’t causing problems between pedestrians and cyclists.

When the work was taking place I hoped we wouldn’t end up with any weird little bits of fenced-off land that might end up being littered with rubbish no one could get to to clear, (as was the case before, particularly by the sorting office, and is the case by the footbridge at the end of Bridge Lane). One such space seems to have been created on the Marygate side of the bridge …

Fenced off bit by Scarborough Bridge

As there are plans to alter the flood defences here perhaps this weird little bit of no-man’s land/litter collecting area is only temporary. I hope.

The earthy/grassed areas around the new impressive bridge look a bit rubbish. I’m not sure if there’s been some attempt to provide planting that is beneficial to bees/wildlife/humans, and that it just hasn’t got established yet. If it isn’t cared for and managed then no doubt the ubiquitous buddleia will drift down from the railway line and we’ll just have another load of that. Another waste of a bit of land. Instead I’m thinking of things we can eat, or at least make herbal tea from. More on that story later.

Anyway, hurrah for Scarborough Bridge, carrying the line that connected my railway ancestors to York to in the 19th century, and is a bridge now — at last — fit for the 21st century.

Opened in 2019

The post Scarborough Bridge, new cycle and footbridge, 2019 appeared first on York Stories.

Scarborough Bridge, with York railway station in background, 10 March 2019

After the previous page, a difficult subject to consider and try to cover, it’s very cheering to be able to return to the subject of the Scarborough Bridge upgrade, with photos taken recently.

When I wrote about this project previously, work had started to clear the ground, giving a clear view into the railway station. Now, as pictured above, we have the new structure in place, soon to connect to the station and to ramps on the Marygate side, all lifted above flood level.

There was a bit of a delay on the installation, but I hoped that if I headed up there this Sunday (10th) then both halves of it might be in place. As indeed they were, and I wasn’t the only person stopping to have a look. This bridge improvement has been recognised as essential, by so many people, for so long.

By Scarborough Bridge, 10 March 2019

The weather was rather grim and wet and dull, at this point. If I’m going to do justice to a thing like this photographically I like it to be illuminated by the sun. When the sun came out later in the day I thought I’d try again. It’s quicker by bike, so despite the freezing cold wind blowing into my ears as I cycled down Queen Anne’s Road I heroically continued on, and crossed Lendal Bridge and came back down the riverside to get some more and sunnier views from that side of the river. Just for you, dear reader.

Scarborough Bridge, from the riverbank by the sorting office, 10 March 2019

Then headed away from the riverside, by the sorting office, to have a look at the bridge work from the ramps by the station that the new bridge will lead into. Here’s the view from the lane by the sorting office.

Scarborough Bridge, from the lane by the sorting office, 10 March 2019

And then up the ramps, getting closer to the level of the new bridge deck.

Soon to be connected up …

And then on the level of it, peering through the fencing and mesh, seeing the level built up here to meet the new bridge deck.

Groundworks on the station side, towards Scarborough Bridge, 10 March 2019

Station side, 10 March 2019

All good to see. A river crossing eagerly awaited by many people.

When the first part of the new bridge deck was supposed to be in, it wasn’t, and on that particular Sunday afternoon I was one of a group of slightly disappointed people standing by the bridge discussing its absence.

When it did appear later I saw it first via images on social media, and it looked really narrow and small, and I was a bit concerned. (It brought to mind the Stonehenge bit in Spinal Tap.)

A relief then later to revisit the bridge and stand under it and realise that the curved parts of the structure (most obvious on the photos I’d seen) are only part of its width, and that the full width of it is more obvious when looking up from underneath, when it’s clear that there’s another part to it, more box-like.

From below – new Scarborough Bridge pedestrian/cycle deck, 4 March 2019

Also down here under the bridge, reminders of the work of previous generations, a detail I hadn’t noticed before.

E Thompson, York. Under Scarborough Bridge

Part of the long history of this river crossing, with its decks replaced and its heights adjusted, over time.

The City of York Council page on the Scarborough Bridge project has recently been updated, giving an opening date in early April. A bit later than originally advertised, as anyone who has been following this project with interest would have expected.

Quite a bit of work to do still, and I hope that the boards around the site will give some updated information. The representation of the progress of the work, in local media, from press releases, has been a bit confusing, which is one of the reasons I thought an update was necessary here on these pages.

Good to see something being built that will benefit the city’s residents, amid so many developments that I find it difficult to feel happy about. In the midst of all the destruction and mess …. building bridges … a good thing.

. . . . .

www.yorkstories.co.uk has been online for quite a while. It’s a resident’s record of York and its changes, a personal perspective on the city of York, UK. It has changed over the years, inevitably, but in general it tends to try to fill in the gaps, covering things not covered in local media, or looking at them in a different way. There are fewer ‘gaps’ to fill these days than there were in 2004, so I’m not adding to it so often, but it’s still a one-person effort, an independent resource, that in recent times has been supported by your virtual coffees. Thank you.

The post Scarborough Bridge update, March 2019 appeared first on York Stories.