Local campaign group Get Away has slammed the latest Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) linked to the controversial Harrogate Station Gateway scheme, warning it will decimate the town centre and threaten the future of local businesses.
If approved, the TRO would slash parking on Station Parade North by 87%, potentially cost the town up to 2,000 visitors every week and leave takeaway customers for five local restaurants with nowhere to park.
The order would also cut loading bays by 75%, leaving just one bay to serve more than 30 businesses along Station Parade North and Station Parade – a move that Get Away says will create a logistical nightmare.
Steven Baines, spokesperson for the group, said: “Harrogate traders are outraged, and who can blame them. Between the drastic parking cuts and two years of disruptive construction, it’s clear that footfall will take a serious hit – and so too will businesses in the area.
“What’s especially worrying is that we are yet to see an economic impact report, meaning the council, the community and those who stand to be hurt the most are still in the dark about the full extent of the damage this project could cause.”
He added: “Increasingly, the Gateway scheme feels less like a considered plan for improvement and more like a blueprint for turning the area into a ghost town.”
Last year, North Yorkshire Council pledged to ‘work with businesses to identify ways to mitigate the impact of the project’. However, Baines says that promise has ‘come to nothing’, with local traders still feeling brushed aside while their livelihoods hang in the balance.
A recent poll of almost 200 Harrogate business owners revealed overwhelming opposition to the Gateway scheme, with 91% against the project.
Baines added: “Local traders have made their position on this scheme abundantly clear, yet the council seems determined to press ahead. If this goes unchecked, it could hollow out the heart of Harrogate, putting livelihoods and the local economy at serious risk.”
The Get Away campaign is now urging Harrogate residents and businesses to make their views heard by submitting objections to the latest TRO before the deadline on September 19th.
It has also launched a new online survey to capture local traders’ views on:
- Their concerns about the Gateway scheme
- The impact of the latest TRO on their businesses
- Whether they feel they’ve been adequately consulted
Baines concluded: “We cannot stay silent. This is a critical moment for Harrogate, and we must act together to protect our town centre and the hardworking people who keep it alive.”
Guidance on how to object to the TRO and access to the ongoing local business survey is available on the Get Away campaign website: Harrogate Get Away – Get Away from Gateway
