The following public questions have been submitted:

1.    “What is the Council's response to the following statement?

I live on Broad Dale Close in East Morton; for the last three years, I and my immediate neighbours and a further nearby 192 households have been impacted by the surface water emanating from the field located to the north of the designated public footpath which is behind numbers 1, 3 and 5 Broad Dale Close.  Self-evidently the amount of water depends on the rainfall quantity breaching a tributary of How Beck, but it can be a horrendously large amount running for days and weeks.  The major issue is the running water eroding gardens and foundations, then when the water freezes this creates a thick heavy deposit of ice for all the residents to cope with on the steep paths and roads. Surely the Council has a legal duty to get the owner of land from which water emanates on to a public footpath to prevent that happening.  I am certain that this case is already on a list in the Council's Drainage Department, but urgent action needs to be taken to stop water coming from private land, across a public footpath, and on to residential streets.  In February 2021, a member of the public slipped on ice and reportedly fractured their elbow in several places.  We certainly don’t want a repeat of this incident and urge the Council to take positive and immediate action." 

2.    “This question is presented on behalf of the unprecedented number of

individuals and national organisations objecting to National Highways (NH) planning application to abandon Queensbury Tunnel - to date, 7,795 (with a further 72 whose comments show that they have erroneously ticked the 'support' box), backed by 14,357 signatures on change.org and endorsed by every parish and town council between here and Keighley.  Many reasoned comments on the planning portal show how converting Queensbury Tunnel to a cycle/walkway as the centrepiece of a greenway connecting Halifax to Bradford and Keighley can bring economic, social, health and tourism benefits in ways which fully concur with Bradford's Local Plan.  Following NH’s iniquitous spend of over £7 million, will Council please explain what measures are being taken to prevent NH’s intended destruction of the tunnel and what progress Bradford Council has made, with Calderdale Council and WYCA, to secure a commitment from the Department for Transport to actively support the repurposing of this unique heritage feature of Bradford’s proud landscape for the benefit of present and future generations?”

(Fatima Butt – 07970 411746)

1.        

What is the Council's response to the following statement?

 "I live on Broad Dale Close in East Morton; for the last three years, I and my immediate neighbours and a further nearby 192 households have been impacted by the surface water emanating from the field located to the north of the designated public footpath which is behind numbers 1, 3 and 5 Broad Dale Close.  Self-evidently the amount of water depends on the rainfall quantity breaching a tributary of How Beck, but it can be a horrendously large amount running for days and weeks. The major issue is the running water eroding gardens and foundations, then when the water freezes this creates a thick heavy deposit of ice for all the residents to cope with on the steep paths & roads. Surely the Council has a legal duty to get the owner of land from which water emanates on to a public footpath to prevent that happening.  I am certain that this case is already on a list in the Council's Drainage Department, but urgent action needs to be taken to stop water coming from private land, across a public footpath, and on to residential streets. In February 2021, a member of the public slipped on ice and reportedly fractured their elbow in several places.  We certainly don’t want a repeat of this incident and urge the Council to take positive and immediate action?" 

Response

This is an issue the Council are aware of and have been dealing with from historic events but also from the events of the recent storms.

Over the next few weeks our Land Drainage Officers will be speaking to the tenant and landowner and visiting site to assess the areas that have been drawn to our attention and any additional elements that we feel need investigating.  In the first instance we need to fully understand what drainage infrastructure is in place on the land and the extent of damage/failure of those systems.

It is too early to say whether remedial works to existing systems will correct the situation and adequately manage flows from adjoining land.  Our investigation may reveal that the systems in place do not have the required capacity to manage the flows and we would therefore need to consider a capital flood risk management scheme to mitigate the issues being raised. A capital scheme is over and above what is required of upstream landowners and as such we would need to determine if Flood Defence Grant in Aid funding from the Environment Agency could be secured to pay for the scheme.  This will also require investigations into the downstream culvert to ensure that adequate capacity is available to manage flows.

We will ensure that we get in contact with affected residents once our on-site investigations are complete.

2.

This question is presented on behalf of the unprecedented number of individuals and national organisations objecting to National Highways (NH) planning application to abandon Queensbury Tunnel - to date, 7,795 (with a further 72 whose comments show that they have erroneously ticked the 'support' box), backed by 14,357 signatures on change.org and endorsed by every parish and town council between here and Keighley.  Many reasoned comments on the planning portal show how converting Queensbury Tunnel to a cycle/walkway as the centrepiece of a greenway connecting Halifax to Bradford and Keighley can bring economic, social, health and tourism benefits in ways which fully concur with Bradford's Local Plan.

Following NH’s iniquitous spend of over £7 million, will Council please explain what measures are being taken to prevent NH’s intended destruction of the tunnel and what progress Bradford Council has made, with Calderdale Council and WYCA, to secure a commitment from the Department for Transport to actively support the repurposing of this unique heritage feature of Bradford’s proud landscape for the benefit of present and future generations?

Response

Bradford Council has lobbied government strongly over a number of years to provide sufficient funding to restore Queensbury Tunnel as part of a cycle network connecting Bradford, Queensbury and Halifax.  We submitted a business plan to Government asking for investment of £27.2 million to restore and regenerate the tunnel, so far our ask of Government has been unanswered.

The campaigners who have raised the issue of the tunnel for so long have done a fantastic job in raising awareness and rallying support.

We secured £1m from government to deliver studies looking at the tunnel from an engineering perspective and also how it can form part of the wider cycle network. This work has been ongoing and we hope to conclude it within the next couple of months. At this point we can engage stakeholders, share the reports and consider next steps in liaison with the Department for Transport.

We are aware of the significant number of objections received to the planning application regarding the closure of the tunnel and high level of support for a cycleway/walkway, which would bring economic, social and health benefits to local communities. The Planning application hasn’t been determined as yet but in considering its decision on the proposed closure the Council will take into consideration those issues raised on objection letters in conjunction with policies contained the Bradford Core Strategy and the emerging Bradford Local Plan.