Public meeting looks at dangerous junction Sir – Each year North Yorkshire County Council publishes statistics identifying road accident “blackspots” across the county.

These statistics confirm what most local residents have known for years – that the stretch of road on the A629 at the Cononley Lane Ends junction is one of the most dangerous in both the district and the county.

This section of the A629 consistently ranks highest for “casualty severity factor”, meaning many serious injuries have occurred there over the years. In 2011 the council’s Accident Investigation and Prevention Team took what it described as “remedial measures” in an attempt to improve road safety at the junction. These measures involved removing some signs, posts and fencing in order to “improve visibility”. They also refreshed some road markings and promised to include the junction as a “case study” in driver education courses.

Unfortunately, these efforts have had little effect on improving safety at the junction. Cononley Lane Ends was again top of the “casualty severity” statistics released last December.

On Monday at 7.30pm, Cononley Parish Council and Farnhill Parish Council will jointly host a public meeting at Cononley Village Institute to explore how we might move forward in improving road safety around the junction. Representatives of North Yorkshire County Council, Area 5 Highways, and North Yorkshire Police will be attending.

The meeting presents an opportunity for members of the public to make their views known to the local authority and police. I strongly urge anyone concerned about this road safety issue to attend the meeting. Public participation on this issue will be crucial if we are to convince the council that action must be taken to improve safety at this chronic accident blackspot.

Coun Patrick Mulligan Airedale Division North Yorkshire County Council Defensive riding Sir – I write in response to A Tudor’s letter “Tax the cyclists. The example of bad cycling behaviour quoted as “cyclists looking over their shoulder when approaching a traffic island then pedalling hell for leather to stop anybody getting in front of them”, to me is just defensive riding. All too often cars try to squeeze past cyclists in traffic islands while not giving the cyclist enough room.

It is those drivers, not the cyclist, that are attempting a dangerous manoeuvre and disregarding the Highway Code. A Tudor seems to insinuate that cyclists should slow down and let the cars go in front. Why is that? Is A Tudor of the belief that motor vehicles have priority? This is simply not true.

On the matter of that old chestnut that cyclists should pay road tax, this is impossible because there is no such thing. I believe A Tudor means Vehicle Excise Duty which is a general tax, the amount of which depends on the CO2 emissions of the vehicle being taxed. As a pedal cycle is a zero emissions vehicle it would be eligible for the same level of taxation as other low emissions vehicles such as the Toyota Prius. That would be a big fat £0! Simon Garner Bungalow Road, Glusburn Sense prevails Sir – After attending the planning committee meeting on Monday regarding the proposed Wyvern Park development, I was delighted that common sense and decency prevailed.

As was voiced by the vast majority of speakers, the people of Skipton would welcome any mixed development proposal for the site as long as it enhances what we already have here in Skipton, which is a very unique and extremely popular blend. The proposal, it was felt almost unanimously, would in fact detract from that very successful formula and threaten the very lifeblood of the town.

It was good to see that despite the amount of money Henry Boot and Sainsbury’s were prepared to throw at the project, the council voted with their heads and their hearts for what is right. As one speaker correctly stated, we should not pay the price for the developer paying too much for the land!

What Skipton now needs is a sensible proposal that will offer a beneficial development of the site. One which will add to and not detract from what has made Skipton the best place in Britain to live. Long may it remain so.

Thank you for publishing excerpts from my previous letter to you in the Craven Herald last week, it may in some small way have helped to tip the balance in favour of the right decision for the people of this great town.

Mick Courcier Birtwhistles Yard, Skipton Scare stories Sir - I live directly in the path of any catastrophic collapse of Silsden reservoir but have not received the letter from Bradford Council that Coun Naylor and the town's mayor were pictured with a week or two ago. Should they not be spending their time ensuring that Yorkshire Water or whoever is responsible for safety of the reservoir has an excellent maintenance schedule and contingency plans to prevent such a collapse rather than issuing scare stories? How is that helping Silsdeners?

Val Carroll Silsden Turbine support Sir - I write with regard to your article in the Craven Herald about the wind turbine at Dukes Farm, Cowling, which the inspector says would have a harmful effect on the character and appearance of the landscape (views are ok but they don’t put meals on the table).

According to Ms Partington, the proposed turbine with its strong vertical emphasis would break the skyline and would be at odds with the inherent characteristics of the landscape, notably its horizontal scale.

My husband and I have farmed at Black Lane Ends for the past 38 years and some of our land faces Dukes Farm across an adjoining field. I have been to stand in our field this morning and looked across at Dukes. I counted 50 telephone and electric poles, six windmills and one large radio mast all within sight. So much for limited vertical structures in the area! The thing is, unless you consciously go looking for them you don't notice them, they are just part of the landscape. The same applies to windmills, we pass one up our lane every time we go out but never particularly notice it.

What are the alternatives to wind power? One is nuclear power, we don't know much about this apart from the fact that the waste from it is dangerous. At the time of the Chernobyl Disaster in 1986, we had snow on our land. The wind was coming from the east and one morning we found the snow covered with a layer of black dust - from Chernobyl! That year one third of our ewes aborted their lambs. Sheep in Wales and other areas of the country were radioactive for a long time afterwards – so much for nuclear power.

We prefer wind power with no dangerous deposits and hope to have our own windmill soon.

John and Betty Brayshay Black Lane Ends Business forum Sir – The organisers of the Save Skipton meeting are to be congratulated for providing local businesses with the opportunity to express a view on the proposal to build another superstore. This initiative highlights the need for a regular arrangement that would allow the local business community to respond to any relevant issue as and when it arises.

In an attempt to achieve this, the Craven Branch of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is exploring the possibility of establishing a forum that would enable anyone interested to consider those issues which impact on the local economy.

The various councils are continually making decisions which relate to subjects such as planning, car-parking and transport that can have an effect on the success and viability of individual companies. Therefore it is vital that the “business aspect” is fully appreciated by councillors and officials when policies are being developed and decisions taken.

But this will only happen if those in business take the time and trouble to understand the important issues and express their opinions. If any organisation or individual is in agreement with this suggestion I would be pleased to hear from them. I can be contacted by e-mail at verner.wheelock@vwa.co.uk Verner Wheelock Chairman, Craven Branch FSB Protect the town Sir – So Skipton is the best place to live? The article published on March 20 included comments from the leaders of our councils stating that “it must be protected again over-development”; “beautiful surrounding countryside; “good local shops and outdoor spaces”; and so on. Even the quotation from the judges stated “why we love it: big hearted, buzzy life in a small town”.

There is mention of good transport links and strong community groups and community spirit. So what does the real picture look like.

In recent times we have seen a development at the rear of the town hall which is out of proportion to the rest of the town centre and has taken out parking spaces. It is envisaged that this may be compensated by the taking of the bowling green to replace these spaces – well that takes care of some of the outdoor space. Developments are planned for Elsey Croft and Greatwood not to mention the ongoing building on Granville Street – more outdoor space gone. There are huge changes in public bus services due to cuts by the county council.

The town is facing the proposed development on land near Waltonwrays which together with other developments will increase the size of Skipton. So when does a “small town” become a “large one” which will look like any other urban conurbation?

As for local community groups. At some of the largest public meetings to be held in this town we raised objection to the development of Elsey Croft. There can be no denying that we were an active community group which was eventually overridden by the Planning Inspectorate from Bristol who could not stop the development due to the lack of a Local Development Plan.

So council leaders, you may well rejoice at the news that Skipton is the best place to live but without a Local Development Plan all that you celebrate about Skipton could literally be swept away by developers that know they can just walk all over the Craven area because there is nothing to stop them. Please remember that you will be needing our votes in the not too distant future so show us that you mean what you say and protect us from overdevelopment.

S Hartley and S Smith Formerly of Save Elsey Croft Group Skipton Worse for wear Sir – Waiting outside the library for my bus one day recently I saw the flag at the town hall flying proudly in the breeze but looking very much worse for wear.

We have been told that Skipton is the best place in the country to live, what an accolade. So before the TV cameras descend on us for all the world to see our town for Le Tour, is there enough money in the kitty to buy a new flag to fly over our town?

Audrey Tattersall Gargrave Grand Depart theory Sir – With regard to the temporary traffic lights on the A65 at Mearbeck. Is the Highways Department’s excuse for work not being started because of wet ground a valid one, or are its staff otherwise engaged manicuring verges and polishing cats eyes on the route of Le Grand Depart?

Paul Morley Ribblesdale Estate, Long Preston