Ryedale District Council to monitor Cleveland Way car park over Easter

Ryedale District Council is reassuring residents it will monitor Cleveland Way car park in Helmsley over the Easter holidays to make sure there’s no overnight parking for motorhomes and campervans, and that no health and safety concerns will be raised as a result.

As of 30 July 2022, no vehicles were allowed to park in any of the car parks for the purpose of overnight sleeping due to a number of safety issues being raised. Measures were also put in place to address the issues.

A full review of alternative options is underway while the suspension is in place. Whilst the review is underway, Ryedale District Council is committed to taking on board the views of all stakeholders.

Robert Harper, Director of Place and Resources for Ryedale District Council explained:

“We would like to reassure residents that we will be closely monitoring the activity at Cleveland Way car park during the Easter holidays. We will have Officers out and about to check everything is OK.

“If anyone spots any vehicle parking overnight or anything we should be aware of, please contact our reception at Ryedale House, Old Malton Road, Malton or via our contact page on our website at www.ryedale.gov.uk/about-the-council/contact-the-council/"

Councillor Di Keal, Chair of Policy and Resources Committee at Ryedale District Council, added:

“We’re keen to welcome visitors to the lovely town of Helmsley at the start of the 2023 holiday season, so with these measures we want to ensure every visitor has a great, all-round experience.”

The car park is split into three individual sections; the front section is designated for cars only, the central area contains coach bays and both standard and larger sized parking bays, and the rear section is made up of standard sized car parking bays where overnight motorhome parking was previously permitted.

The measures taken to resolve the issues included:

• Automatic locking doors installed on the public toilets so they could be opened earlier and later.
• Signs and lines to mark out safe parking distances, the maximum number of vehicles allowed and the health and safety guidelines for staying on site.
• Additional security staff were employed on busy weekends / bank holidays from 8.00am – 8.00pm to patrol the car park, assist visitors with parking and redirect motorhomes attempting to park in the coach bays.
• Barriers installed to prevent access to the central and rear sections of the car park between 6.30pm and 6.30am and a height restriction barrier at the entrance to the front section of the car park.
• New signage to indicate what parking is available where and when.
• Motorhomes and campervans continue to be able to use the car park during the day and wider / longer spaces were put in place to accommodate them more easily.