A64 Bottleneck Will Strangle Coastal Transport Improvements, Councillor Warns

Transport improvements on the Yorkshire Coast will fail to deliver faster journey times unless the A64 is upgraded, a local councillor has warned.

Transport connections and bus services across the Yorkshire Coast will fail to deliver faster journey times unless a major bottleneck on the A64 is removed.

The warning comes amid ongoing consultations for a new draft Local Transport Plan, which aims to guide future investment in roads, buses, rail, cycling, and walking infrastructure across the region.

Coastal communities, including Scarborough, Whitby, and Filey, have been identified in the transport strategy as areas that receive less support from transport investment due to having fewer through routes for passing trade.

However, plans to dual the A64 between Hopgrove and Barton-le-Willows were recently omitted from the Government's two billion pound Road Investment Strategy, leaving local leaders frustrated.

The route acts as a vital economic artery linking York to Malton, Scarborough, and the East Coast, providing important connections to Bridlington and Filey. Significant stretches remain single carriageway, which acts as a barrier to investment, productivity, and regional economic growth.

Scarborough Councillor Derek Bastiman warned that regional transport plans will not bring meaningful benefits to the coast without addressing the severe congestion.

Addressing Mayor David Skaith, Councillor Derek Bastiman said:

"I applaud your thoughts regarding bus provision, but it still goes back to the A64, and I know you get sick of me banging on about it, but I won't stop banging on about it until it gets done.

It's important to get the A64 done, because with the best will in the world, any bus service you want to introduce, any scheme you want to introduce, until you get that rid of that bottleneck from Hopgrove down to Jinnah, it won't improve the connectivity or timing at all."

The long-awaited dualling project has faced significant hurdles after a report from National Highways concluded that emerging options for the upgrade were high in cost and offered low value for money.

Instead of new construction on the A64, the Government is focusing heavily on maintaining the existing network through the new Road Investment Strategy, known as RIS3. The scheme has not been identified as a pipeline project for future development.

Four North Yorkshire MPs recently wrote to Prime Minister Andy Burnham, urging him to prioritise the long-awaited dualling of the route through the new Number 10 North initiative.

The MPs argued that upgrading the route would improve safety, strengthen connections between York and coastal communities, and unlock productivity across North Yorkshire.

Elected Mayor of York and North Yorkshire David Skaith acknowledged the long-standing demands for the road upgrade but highlighted the significant financial barriers preventing the project from moving forward.

Mayor David Skaith said:

"I think it's been raised in the county since the 60s or 70s and there was a Prime Minister of this country who was a was an MP in this patch a couple of years as well and it didn't happen then. So, we are we're always talking with highways England around all road infrastructure across the patch and A64 does come up but the cost of it is is the cost of it and I don't have that money."

The Mayor's draft Local Transport Plan is designed to support the delivery of sixty thousand new homes across the region over the next decade while maintaining the reliability of the transport network.

The strategy notes that accommodating ambitious housing growth will require more efficient ways for people to travel around towns without significantly increasing congestion.

A drop-in consultation event for the plan is scheduled to take place at Scarborough Indoor Market on Wednesday (Oct 13th) from 10am - 2pm, offering residents a chance to shape the future of regional transport.

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