On Monday 11th January Government Minister, Andrew Jones MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at Department for Transport, was invited by local MP Kevin Hollinrake to visit the region to see the problems facing businesses, hauliers and residents on various roads at key locations in Hambleton.
During the morning, the Minister and Mr Hollinrake went to Dalton Industrial Estate and Sutton Bank. They were joined at Dalton by representatives from County and District Councils, the Local Enterprise Partnership and local businesses. At Sutton-under-Whitestonecliffe they met with representatives from the Parish and County Councils, together with the Police and Crime Commissioner for North Yorkshire.
Dalton Industrial Estate is home to 29 businesses including national and international companies and provides over 850 local jobs. For most of the year, these business can easily access the nearby A167 dual carriageway and connections to the A1/A19 corridor via a one mile road that passes over the old and very narrow Dalton Bridge. When the bridge floods it makes the industrial estate inaccessible on public roads, in 2012 the businesses were isolated for 8 days. Flooding to Dalton Lane had occurred between 1 and 2 times per year but its frequency and severity is getting worse.
Mr Hollinrake has visited the estate several times and spoken to those working in the area,
“Improvement to Dalton Bridge would help businesses, employees and local residents alike. The Dalton estate has the potential to grow significantly, with 50 hectares of developable land, and new investment, up to 750 new jobs and apprenticeships. The present state of the bridge will jeopardise existing jobs, any further business opportunities and therefore the economic future of the area. Planning approval was secured on 10th December 2015. The cost of replacing the bridge is estimated at £3m of which around £1.5m will be provided by the businesses themselves and the local authority. We still need to find the remaining balance but I have asked for the Government's help in identifying an early solution to the problem. The Local Enterprise Partnership are able to bid for significant investment through Local Growth Funding and the outcome of the meeting seemed very positive."
Sutton-under-Whitestonecliffe Parish Council raised concerns about the amount of heavy traffic that travels along the steep route at Sutton Bank. Large vehicles have got into difficulty on the incline causing numerous road closures. Speaking about the Minister’s visit Mr Hollinrake said,
“I am grateful for the time the Minister spent here in our constituency and the opportunity to show him the areas of concern. Sutton Bank is part of a busy and important route across the constituency and concern is growing about traffic problems. We need to find solutions to the problems to make sure our county is accessible to all and allow reliable trade routes for our businesses.”