Call to scrap park and ride plan for Richard Dunn site

The call came after a consultation into proposals for a 750-space car park and bus terminus at the Council-owned site revealed there was a “mixed” response to the plans.

Bradford Council’s Bradford South Area Committee will now urge transport bosses at West Yorkshire Combined Authority to go back to the drawing board with the proposed South Bradford Park and Ride.

The scheme is due to be funded by the Government through its Transforming Cities Fund and would see commuters park up at a site in the south of the city before being transported via improved bus lanes and cycle routes down Manchester Road to the city centre.

Plans for a park and ride date back more than 20 years, with the most recent proposals placing the car park at the former Richard Dunn site.

The leisure centre was closed in 2019, and the building was due to be demolished.

But is a surprise twist, the 1970s building was listed by Historic England in 2022 – saving it from demolition and casting doubt on future plans for the site.

At a meeting of the Bradford South Committee on Thursday evening, Darren Badrock, project manager for the Transforming Cities Fund, gave an update to members about the project, and the results of the public consultation.

He said the Richard Dunn site was regularly used for car parking on Bradford Bulls match days, so it was seen as a suitable site for the park and ride.

He added: “That scheme has been complicated by the listing of Richard Dunn. The only way the whole site could be cleared is if we could demonstrate to Historic England that the building was being replaced by a project that would offer ‘significant community benefits.’”

Referring to the park and ride consultation results, Mr Badrock said: “It is fair to say there was a mixed reaction to the proposals.

“The idea for a parking area and the idea of new cycling facilities hasn’t been as well received as we’d hoped.

“But the redevelopment of Manchester Road and bus enhancements on that route has proved popular.

Manchester Road (Image: newsquest)

“We’re working on an outline business case to take the scheme to the next stage, and we’re looking at how to take into account the public feedback.

“I know there is a lot of public feeling that this scheme is already in the books – that is not the case.”

One hundred and ninety-two people responded to the consultation, which was held late last year.

When it came to the bus route improvements, 95 people said they supported or strongly supported the plans.

Seventy two said they did not support them, and the rest were neutral.

On the proposals to upgrade cycling and walking routes along Manchester Road, just 62 said they were supportive, with 103 opposed to the plan.

And with the park and ride on the Richard Dunn site, just 79 were in favour, with 88 opposed to the idea.

Twenty one respondents were neutral, and one didn’t know what to think.

Councillor David Green (Lab, Wibsey) is the former leader of Bradford Council and chair of the committee.

He said: “I like the idea of enhancements of bus lanes on Manchester Road, but if we’re going to invest public money into it can we please make sure the bus companies provide a better service?

“But let’s get to the elephant in the room – the idea of using the Richard Dunn site as a park and ride was a barking mad idea in the first place.

“It is slap bang in the middle of a residential area. You’re looking at 750 cars using that site seven days a week – right up against the people who live there.

“The environmental impact to those households will be immense.

“I told the people behind this scheme that was the reaction they’d get. I think the people who set up the consultation didn’t know Bradford well enough.”

He put forward a motion saying: “This committee supports the proposed improvements to bus priority lanes, but ask that the park and ride scheme at Richard Dunn not be pursued in line with the feedback from the public consultation.”

The committee approved the motion, and it will be fed back to the West Yorkshire Combined Authority via the Council’s Executive.