Let us fell tree or face traffic delays - council

A main route through a market town is being reduced to a single lane so that repair work can take place on a medieval bridge.

Leeds City Council said it would be installing temporary traffic signals on Otley Bridge from Thursday to facilitate pedestrians crossing the River Wharfe.

The council had planned to install a temporary bridge over the river, which required felling two trees in Tittybottle Park, but it said it had been unable to safely remove them due to the "actions of protestors".

Deputy leader Jonathan Pryor said if the council was unable to build the temporary bridge, the traffic lights could be in place for at least six months.

He said: "Engineers have spent over a year looking at potential options, and we have looked into the feasibility of all ideas sent to the council since the public consultations in August of last year.

"However, after several site visits to establish safe working areas and practices for the felling of the two trees, we have been prevented from doing so.

"If the two trees cannot be removed before the end of February, the temporary footway cannot be installed, and we will have to resort to reducing Otley Bridge to a single lane of traffic using temporary signals for at least six months."

A number of residents have been protesting against the felling plans for the trees, one of which is an 180-year-old oak, since the beginning of December.

Charity Otley2030 has also been examining the proposals and advocating for other options.

A spokesperson for the climate action charity said the project appeared not to have followed the correct legal processes or adequate consultation.

They said the council "should prioritise finding a solution which tackles the already problematic traffic over the bridge" and improves the situation for all those using it as well as adhering to climate commitments and protecting and enhancing the structure.

"Otley residents are being hoodwinked - the oak tree is a symbol but not the whole story," the spokesperson added.

The council said its preferred solution remained felling the trees and building a temporary footway, but the work needed to be carried out before bird nesting season begins at the end of February.

The medieval bridge dates back to the 13th Century but the walkway - which is in need of repairs - was built in the 1950s as an add-on to the bridge.

Pryor said: "Concerns around access for emergency services, the hospital, the school and for all residents led us to maintain that installing a temporary footway is the safest and least disruptive way to carry out this essential and major engineering work.

"While most of the feedback we have received supports the construction of a temporary footway, if we cannot create a safe working environment there due to the strength of feeling and associated actions of protestors, then there would only one option left, which is to install temporary traffic lights on Otley Bridge."

The council added that if the felling went ahead, the two trees would be replaced by a minimum of 13 semi-mature trees across Otley, including in Tittybottle Park.

Work to install a temporary footway would begin in March and take around 12 weeks.

The existing footway would then be removed from spring 2025. The replacement permanent footway would be expected to be open in autumn 2025.

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