After becoming sick of traffic “chaos” and an onslaught of illegal traveller camps, an angry Leeds man has managed to get concrete bollards and boulders installed onto footpaths next to one of Leeds’ busiest roads.
The “frustrated” Tory councillor couldn't bear the “nuisance” and antisocial behaviour the trespassing was causing. Fields off the new East Leeds Orbital Route (ELOR) near Whinmoor and Scarcroft have been plagued with 14 illegal camps since January, alone.
And “opportunistic” motorists were cutting through the footpaths and driving back out onto oncoming traffic on the busy A64 York Road. Councillor Sam Firth has been lobbying for concrete barriers since before the ELOR first opened late last year.
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The Whinmoor man, who represents Harewood, even added that some people’s satnavs and online maps were guiding them through the footpaths. He further revealed the shocking tale of a hapless delivery driver who once ended up in the banking after taking the perilous route.
Leeds City Council has placed the new barriers on footpaths near Whinmoor Cemetery. They’ve been installed on Skeltons Lane and Thorner Lane, which were previously carriageways providing access to York Road before the ELOR was built.
Elated by the progress, Cllr Firth said: “The biggest chaos was on Thorner Lane, which was closed, and opportunists were driving on the lane and pulling out onto oncoming traffic onto the A64. As a result, we were very lucky we didn’t have any accidents, but it certainly led to a few near misses. People did not expect drivers to be pulling out from a closed road.
“We actually had a delivery driver who followed his satnav and tried to turn up Thorner Lane, from the A64, and found himself in the banking.
“We’ve had lots of issues from nuisance bikes, antisocial behaviour, flytipping and 14 illegal camps since the beginning of the year. We drastically needed to clamp down on people accessing and basically damaging the country park after a lot of public money has been spent on improving the area and ensuring people can enjoy it.
“It’s frustrating really, as I’d been arguing for a long time to ensure we signpost the area, so people know what is going on, and more importantly we block it off. Hopefully now this will be a strong step going forward.”
He’s added that while unfortunately this won’t stop quad bikes or motorbikes, he feels this is a positive step going forward and will continue to fight for more barriers across all the spurs, footpaths and cycle lanes off ELOR.
In response to the developments, a Leeds City Council spokesperson said: “A series of measures are being introduced across the ELOR scheme to dissuade anti-social behaviour and trespass.
“These measures follow feedback from the general public, ward members and the Police. The need for further measures will be kept under review”.
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