Delays Hit New Access Road For Scarborough's Oliver's Mount

North Yorkshire Council has confirmed that a proposed new access road for the Oliver's Mount race circuit will not be ready for the August racing events.

North Yorkshire Council says the new access road for the Oliver's Mount race circuit will not now be in place for the August events. It had been hoped that a new arrangement could be in place ahead of the upcoming meets at the Scarborough venue but now look unlikely to be in place until next year.

Jackson's Lane, the primary access route to the historic circuit, has been closed for seven years due to safety reasons. This closure has created significant logistical challenges for race organisers and local residents. As a result, Musham Bank Road has faced closures during events, causing disruption for people living in nearby Eastfield.

Eastfield councillor Tom Seston recently raised concerns about the delays in providing an alternative two-lane access track.

Councillor Tom Seston said:

"I'm fully supportive of Oliver's Mount as a race track and recognize the benefits the local economy that the fantastic venue brings.

What I'm not supportive of is the lack of progress towards a solution to the access issue caused by the closure of Jackson's Lane, namely a two-lane access track that had been proposed. As a result of this, the Musham Bank Road has been closed, which is the main access route in and out of Eastfield.

Councillor Taylor, please can you explain to residents why this medium-term solution will not be ready for the third race in August as previously stated, and also why residents will continue to face disruption by races into 2027?"

Executive Member for Highways, Councillor Malcolm Taylor, responded by outlining the ongoing challenges with the proposed new route.

Councillor Malcolm Taylor said:

"Discussions are still ongoing whether the track the developer is constructing can be easily widened to 6 meters.

Due to the complications experienced and the formal processes still needed to be worked through, it is not expected that the track will be completed in time.

In the interim period, we will continue to utilize the temporary track matting solution to ensure access is maintained for racing events at Oliver's Mount and will work with the race organizer and local members to enhance its operation and endeavour to keep disruption to a minimum. This is a priority. It is complex and we are hopefully making progress."

Speaking to This is the Coast, Councillor Taylor said he expects the new track to be in place for the diaried events in 2027.

The circuit operators have been seeking a practical, medium-term solution to avoid the need for ongoing traffic management. They believe a two-way stone track from the Musham Bank roundabout is the right answer. However, operators have noted that the proposed stone road still has a bottleneck where it meets the tarmac, meaning Musham Bank Road would still need to be closed for event weekends.

Councillor Taylor explained that creating the new track involves multiple stakeholders and logistical hurdles.

Councillor Malcolm Taylor said:

"This is a a complex engineering project and financial implications, further complicated by some of the land may not actually be owned by North Yorkshire Council and there are other parties involved in this this project.

Things have changed since the last meeting, we are progressing the proposal to create a two way access track. This is still being finalized and we will need to secure planning permission before any construction work can take place.

The extent of the track that has to be amended in order to time the track is quite complex and involved the developers of the adjacent housing site."

Since 2019, the team behind Oliver's Mount says it has invested significant time, effort, and personal finances to restart the races at the Scarborough venue. For major event weekends, North Yorkshire Council installed a temporary plastic track solution, taking on the larger share of the costs. While this arrangement worked operationally, venue operators noted that it was very expensive to install and highly disruptive to local residents.

Recently, the venue operators took the formal step of serving a Section 56 notice under the Highways Act 1980 on North Yorkshire Council. This legal notice requires the council to admit their liability to repair Jackson's Lane as an adopted highway. The operators described the council-owned asset as a jewel in the crown for real road racing and for Scarborough, hoping that the local authority will support them through this final challenge.