A BRIDGE over the railway line at Cross Hills could cost between £2 million and £6.7 million pounds.

But finding the money to build one could be a problem.

These are the conclusions of a report by highways bosses looking into schemes to rid the area of traffic gridlock.

Level crossing barriers and sheer volume of traffic coming off the Kildwick roundabout lead to snarl-ups at peak times with traffic coming to a standstill.

Back in November, members of North Yorkshire's highways committee agreed to look into ways of solving the problem by building a bridge over the railway line which would bypass the level crossing.

Councillors are due to consider the report today (Friday).

The proposals include:

o Building a bridge at the exact point of the level crossing;

o Constructing a road off the Airedale industrial estate which would lead to a bridge over the line and connect up to the Dalesway junction - costing £2 million;

o Constructing a new junction with the Aire Valley Trunk Road to link with the A6068 - costing £6.7 million.

North Yorkshire County Council's Chris Millns is urging members to vote for the second option.

He says a bridge at the level crossing site would conflict with the many junctions off Keighley Road, lead to more traffic problems during construction and also possible compensation claims from industry and householders.

Finding the money to build a new junction with the A629, a matter first considered as part of the now defunct Glusburn bypass, could also be a problem, adds Mr Millns.

He says creating a road off the Airedale industrial estate is the only real option, although he is still unsure as to where the money to build it would come from.

"Whilst funding could be bid for through the county council's local transport plan, it is unlikely that a major project of this nature with such a localised impact would achieve sufficient priority to be successful," he said.

Mr Millns will recommend to councillors that they consult with Craven District Council on the schemes.

However, Craven District Councillor Philip Barrett, who brought the matter to attention of highways experts last September, said he was disappointed with the report.

He is hoping to persuade councillors to visit the area and look at the problem first hand.

"I am most disappointed with the options stated in the report which also says there is no money available," he said.

"Furthermore, I specifically asked for an option of constructing a new section of road from the back of the industrial estate to Eastburn Bridge to be investigated, and it has not.

He added: "It is time the county council grasped this problem and relieved South Craven residents of the daily misery caused by the level crossing.

"I cannot think of another comparable situation in the whole of North Yorkshire."

Coun Barrett said the level crossing problem was one of the major issues at the forefront of people's minds during his canvassing for last week's local elections.

o A bus company is to re-examine the services it provides to Cononley due to delays caused by the village's level crossing.

Keighley and District Travel says it has expressed concern about the amount of timethe barrier is in the down position.

Commercial manager Geoff Lomax said delays had caused its buses to be "unreliable" and forced it to re-think its hourly service through the village.

"This does not mean that we will be pulling out of Cononley altogether," he said. "We're looking at how we can alleviate the problem."

Mr Lomax added that any changes would probably take place in the autumn.

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