Update on work to the gas network at Skipton Road, Harrogate

Update about our project at Skipton Road: 21 December 2020

Work to replace the gas mains to end in April 2021

Northern Gas Networks (NGN), the gas distributor for the North of England, is carrying out essential work to ensure the continued safe and reliable supply of gas to customers in the Skipton Road (A59) area of Harrogate.

In July, NGN began work to replace just under one kilometre of ageing gas mains with new, more durable plastic pipes, beneath on a stretch of Skipton Road between King Edward’s Drive and Regent Avenue. The project will ensure that there is a safe and reliable gas supply for customers in Harrogate for many years to come.

Work was progressing when in October the project was paused until the new year, at the request of North Yorkshire County Council. NGN will continue to work closely with the council, local business and residents to complete the project as quickly as possible.

So that engineers can carry out the work safely and efficiently, and to protect the public, some traffic management measures will be put in place.

From Monday 4 January, there will be two-way temporary traffic lights on Skipton Road, which will remain in place for the full duration of the project. These will start at Harrogate Fire Station and will finish at the junction with Regent Avenue. The project is due to finish on 5 March 2021.

Signs will be displayed for motorists and a full signed diversion put in place.

To ensure the safety of colleagues, customers and the community, the majority of the work is being carried out in the street and engineers will follow Government guidelines for safe distance working of at least two metres wherever possible.

There will also be extra safety precautions in place for any work that does need to be done indoors: NGN engineers will wash their hands and use hand sanitiser before entering a property; they will maintain a two metre distance and ask customers to stay in another room while they work, and will wear a face mask and gloves.

Where customers are self-isolating, have symptoms or are at high clinical risk, our engineers will wear full PPE including coveralls and eye protection.

Russ Kaye, Business Operations Lead for Northern Gas Networks, said: “We would like to apologise in advance for any inconvenience caused during these essential works. However, it is vital we now complete this postponed project as soon as possible in order to continue to maintain a safe and reliable gas supply to the residents of Harrogate.

“We want to assure residents and road users that we will be working hard to complete this scheme as safely and as quickly as possible.”

There will be regular updates on the NGN website, at https://bit.ly/38g0wD5

As well as NGN’s critical service (which include responding to gas emergencies, carrying out emergency repairs and critical maintenance activities) engineers are continuing to carry out work to upgrade infrastructure, including planned work to replace ageing metal gas pipes, where most of the work can be carried out safely in the street.

Customers can read more about our Covid Secure Promise here.

For further information about the work please contact NGN’s Customer Care Team on 0800 040 7766 or email: customercare@northerngas.co.uk.

Anyone that smells gas or suspects carbon monoxide should call the National Gas Emergency Service immediately on 0800 111 999. This line is in operation 24-hours a day, seven days a week.

Update

Wednesday 12th May 2021

The gas main replacement work on Skipton Road was completed last month. However, a gas escape has been reported to us, at the junction of Skipton Road and Bilton Lane, near the Esso petrol station. We are now working to carry out an urgent emergency repair on the gas main, to ensure a safe and reliable supply of gas for customers.

Our engineers are on site and are working as quickly as possible to repair the gas escape. We expect the work to take no more than three weeks. To access the affected gas pipe, we will need to put temporary traffic lights in place. There will be two-way traffic lights on Skipton Road, and one set of lights on Bilton Lane.

We are advising drivers to find a different route if they can, or leave extra time for travel if you do need to use Skipton Road. We apologise for any disruption that may be caused by the urgent repair works.

The gas escape is not at the same location as the recent gas main replacement works, which took place between King Edward’s Drive and Regent Avenue, further along Skipton Road.

If you have any queries, please contact our Customer Care Team on 0800 040 7766 (option 3) or email the Team at customercare@northerngas.co.uk

Monday 12th April 2021

Work on Skipton Road has now been completed, including resurfacing. The traffic management arrangements have been removed. We apologise again for the inconvenience caused to customers in Harrogate during the last few months, and thank residents and roadusers for their patience during this complex and challenging project.

Wednesday 31st March 2021

The project is now in its final week. Works beneath the road surface are due to end on Wednesday 7 April, and the road being resurfaced and the site being made good by Saturday 10 April. If you have any queries, please contact the Customer Care Team on 0800 040 7766 (option 3), or contact the team over email at customercare@northerngas.co.uk

Monday 12th October 2020

The four-way traffic lights at the junction with King’s Road and Woodfield Road now been removed. Gas pipework from the 1950s which was found underneath the four-way junction has now been removed, since when we have been working to ‘make good’ and resurface the Skipton Road end of King’s Road. This work will be completed shortly. Two-way temporary traffic lights are still in place.

On Skipton Road itself, we are now past the branch of Jewson builders’ merchants and the new gas pipe below this stretch of the road has been laid in the ground. Temporary traffic lights are in place. The new pipe will be connected to the gas network this week, and then we will continue to progress along Skipton Road.

This is a major complex project, involving the removal of a number of ageing metal gas pipes some of which are 70 or 80-years-old. We apologise for the delay to these works. However, completion remains on schedule for the end of November 2020.

Thursday 24th September 2020

The temporary traffic lights have been removed at the junctions of Skipton Road with Woodfield Road, and of Skipton Road with King’s Road. There are two-way traffic lights still in place on Skipton Road, and these are now away from the junction and are near Jewson builders’ merchants. We expect these two-way, and three-way temporary traffic lights at junctions with side roads, to move along Skipton Road as the project progresses.

We now expect the whole project to finish at the end of November 2020.

We understand the roadworks have been disruptive and we would like to apologise to motorists and residents in the area for the inconvenience caused. We are working hard to complete the project as safely and quickly as possible.

Friday 4th September 2020

We are continuing to commit extra resources so that the work taking place at the junction of Skipton Road, Woodfield Road and King’s Road can be completed as soon as possible. There are still two teams of engineers and two mechanical diggers on site, working from 8am to 7pm, seven days-a-week. We aim to finish work at the junction by Friday 11^th September at the latest; at that point the four-way traffic lights will be removed, and the flow of traffic will return to normal around the junction.

Work will then continue on the final stretch of the works, along Skipton Road to near the junction with Regent Avenue. The project is nearly halfway through and NGN expects it to be completed in 11 weeks’ time.

Signage alerting drivers to the works has also been placed further out from Skipton Road, giving road users more time in which to use an alternative route before reaching any queuing traffic ahead.

Our on-site Customer Care Officer Hannah Thompson has been speaking to residents, businesses and schools in the vicinity to keep them up-to-date on this latest phase of the works.

If you have any questions or need more information, you can speak to Hannah on 07773 236473 between the hours of 8.30am and 5.30pm Monday to Friday, or email her at hthompson@northerngas.co.uk. You can also speak to our Customer Care Team on 0800 040 7766 (option three) or on email at customercare@northerngas.co.uk

Friday 28th August 2020

The work on Skipton Road has progressed well since it began on 12^th July.

The project has now reached its most complex engineering phase, as work takes place at the junction of Skipton Road, Woodfield Road and King’s Road.

To maintain the flow of traffic, we have introduced four-way temporary lights at this busy junction.

So we can complete this phase as safely and quickly as possible, we are putting in extra resources.

From Monday 31^st August, we will double up the manpower and equipment, and our engineering team will now work from 8am to 7pm, seven days a week. We aim to finish work at the junction in two weeks, rather than the anticipated four weeks.

Signage alerting drivers to the works has also been placed further out from Skipton Road, giving road users more time in which to use an alternative route before reaching any queuing traffic ahead.

Our on-site Customer Care Officer Hannah Thompson has been speaking to residents and businesses in the area to keep them up-to-date on this latest phase of the works.

If you have any questions or need more information, you can speak to Hannah, your Customer Care officer for this project, on 07773 236473 between the hours of 8.30am and 5.30pm, or email her at hthompson@northerngas.co.uk. You can also speak to our Customer Care team on 0800 040 7766 (option three) or email customercare@northerngas.co.uk

Friday 24th July 2020

Work is progressing well and is running to schedule. Traffic at peak times is heavier than usual, and to help with this, the temporary traffic lights are now being manned. This will improve the flow of traffic, particularly at rush hour.

Unfortunately, due to the location of the gas main it has now been necessary to close a section on King Edward’s Drive, at the junction with Skipton Road. This closure is now in operation, and will be in place for two weeks.

A diversion is in place around this closure. Drivers can use Church Avenue and Bilton Lane to drive around the closed junction. This will add a small amount of extra time to journeys, so please allow for this.

A temporary bus stop on King Edward’s Drive nearest the junction is staying open.

If you have any questions or need more information, you can speak to Hannah Thompson, your Customer Care officer for this project, on 07773 236473 between the hours of 8.30am and 5.30pm, or email her at hthompson@northerngas.co.uk

You can also speak to our Customer Care team on 0800 040 7766 (option three) or email customercare@northerngas.co.uk

Monday 13th July 2020

Our engineers arrived on site yesterday, and have been carrying out their initial preparations before work begins. The temporary traffic lights are in place, but they will not be operational until after the morning rush hour on Tuesday 14th July. The project is expected to last for the next 14 weeks.

Our Customer Care Officer Hannah Thompson has been visiting customers on Skipton Road this morning, to answer any questions and to give out our care packages of essential items to residents who said that they would benefit from them. The care packages were made available by NGN in response to the Coronavirus pandemic and contain essential items including food; supporting customers who have been particularly vulnerable during lockdown and who are finding getting out to the shops difficult.

If you have any questions or need more information, you can speak to Hannah Thompson, our Customer Care officer for this project on 07773 236473 between the hours of 8.30am and 5.30pm, or email hthompson@northerngas.co.uk

You can also speak to our Customer Care team on 0800 040 7766 or email customercare@northerngas.co.uk

Frequently asked questions

Why do the works have to be done?

Northern Gas Networks is carrying out part of a nationwide infrastructure investment project to replace old metal gas mains with new plastic pipes.

Some of these mains have been in the ground for decades and occasionally require repair. The new, more durable plastic pipes will ensure the gas network is future-proofed for another 100 years.

How are the works planned?

The works are carried out in conjunction with other utility providers and the council’s own engineers.

What if my business suffers because of the works?

It is essential that we maintain the gas network and our engineers work hard to reduce disruption to homes and businesses where we are working. However, there will inevitably be some disruption.

You may qualify for compensation if you are a small business relying on customers being able to visit your premises for your business to carry out normal trade. You must meet certain criteria to make a claim, as set out by the Gas (Streetworks) (Compensation of small businesses) Regulations 1996. You can contact us below or visit our getting in touch page for more information on how to apply.

I’m a home-owner, will my gas supply be affected?

Part of our work on this project will involve laying a new large diameter low pressure gas main, to feed properties in the surrounding area.

We won’t need to connect any services to this new main, so customers will not experience any impact to their supply.

What if I have concerns with the work that is carried out?

You can speak to Hannah Thompson, our Customer Care officer for this project on 07773 236473 between the hours of 8.30am and 5.30pm, or email hthompson@northerngas.co.uk