A CONSULTATION into possible changes to a Skipton road junction said to be one of the most dangerous in North Yorkshire closes on Saturday.

North Yorkshire County Council has been trialling temporary changes to the Embsay and Eastby junction off the A59/A65, banning right hand turns off the bypass with motorists having to travel up to the Skibeden roundabout and back towards Skipton to make the turn.

Last week, Skipton councillors, Andy Solloway and Robert Heseltine met at the junction site with a highways engineer, a police road safety officer and representatives from the Skipton and Craven Group of the Institute of Advanced Motoring.

Karen Darvell, who lives in Skipton, said: “At the meeting the high number of people killed or seriously injured at this junction was acknowledged with genuine concern by both the police and highways, especially as it was agreed they could not think of another junction in North Yorkshire with similar casualty numbers.

“Having discussed all options, the clear consensus was that the optimum safety solution would be the installation of a roundabout. The highways officer explained the next step towards potentially installing a roundabout would be a feasibility study which would be completed by a specialist contractor and scheduled alongside other commitments.

“If public opinion is in favour of a roundabout as a solution, highways will use funds from local developer contributions towards the cost of the feasibility study. The study would demonstrate the viability of a roundabout and form the basis on which funding applications could be made to finance the significant costs involved in this solution.”

People have until Saturday to add their comments to the consultation. Email: H&Tschemeconsultation@northyorks.gov.uk