Calls for road signs after hedgehog deaths

A spate of hedgehog deaths on a village road has prompted calls to warn drivers with signs.

Upset residents of Wheldrake near York have sent the council numerous photos of creatures which have been killed but said nothing had been done.

Liberal Democrat ward councillor Christian Vassie, who is campaigning for the signs, said York City Council had come up with "one excuse after another" as to why they would not install them.

However, city development lead Garry Taylor said doing so would divert funds away from schemes proven to slow traffic down and save animals' lives.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, villagers approached Vassie about 10 months ago to ask if the council would be able to install the warnings on approaches to the village.

The councillor said it came as national studies showed the number of hedgehogs had declined by between 30% and 75% across the UK in the last two decades.

They are listed as vulnerable to extinction on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) Red List of British Mammals.

Vassie said the government had changed its rules in 2023, allowing councils to install small animal warning signs on roads without needing Department for Transport approval.

He said: "We have dealt with each bureaucratic hoop the council throws at us but as soon as we deal with one they find another excuse.

"Sadly, it's clear they are not interested in helping residents in my ward protect wildlife."

The councillor confirmed the £300 in funding needed for the four signs had already been identified but he would also happily pay for it if York City Council blocked residents from using ward funding.

Director of City Development Garry Taylor said research showed warning signs had little impact on driver behaviour, unless they were linked to known animal crossing locations.

He said: "While we recognise the importance of protecting local wildlife and appreciate residents' concern for hedgehogs, we also have to manage a limited budget to best effect.

"Animal warning signs are effective in locations where deer are known to regularly cross the road, for example.

"If we were to divert our limited resources into a hedgehog warning sign programme then we would have to reduce our resource in other programmes such as requests for Resident Parking (ResPark) schemes and road safety projects - the latter of which are proven to slow drivers down and have the added benefit of protecting both people and hedgehogs.

"There are many locations across York where hedgehogs are active so we would anticipate requests for signage from many areas.

"For these reasons, we will not be progressing the request for additional hedgehog signs at this time."

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