DUALLING the A64 west of Malton would cost between £30.5 million and £105 million - depending partly on whether the existing road is widened or a brand new road built.

Those were the calculations of consultants who examined the feasibility of dualling a stretch of the route between the end of the Malton bypass and Crambeck in 2015.

The experts from Jacobs UK Limited said three potential concepts had been identified: “online” widening of the existing single carriageway, an “offline route” away from the existing road and a “hybrid” mix of offline and online.

They estimated online dualling would cost between £30.5 million and £65 million, offline dualling between £50 million and £105 million and a hybrid between £40 million and £84 million.

They wrote that offline dualling would require a greater land take and introduce development into previously unspoilt areas but it was considered online would create significant disruption and potential safety problems during construction.

“Consequently, although providing the best value for money solution it is not recommended for further consideration.”

They therefore recommended that both the offline and hybrid concepts should be progressed to the next stage in the design process so as to determine a preferred option.

The consultants said the aims of the schemes were to unblock growth, improve east-west connections, improve journey time reliability and grow a strong and growing coastal economy.

Some sections experienced relatively high proportions of HGVs and agricultural vehicles which, combined with a lack of overtaking opportunities, could result in vehicles being delayed behind slower moving traffic.

North Yorkshire County Council said yesterday the A64 was the responsibility of Highways England, but local authorities had long believed a significant upgrade was needed to address journey time reliability, congestion and road safety problems.

It said the study was jointly commissioned by the council, Ryedale and Scarborough councils, primarily to identify deliverable schemes that would address traffic problems, and to lobby and inform HE about the need for improvements.

The Press recently launched a Dual Them! campaign in support of the new A64 growth partnership of local authorities, MPs, business organisations and the York, North Yorkshire and East Riding Enterprise Partnership, which is pressing for dualling between York’s Hopgrove roundabout and Malton.

This newspaper is also pressing for dualling of York Outer Ring Road. It recently emerged that this would cost between £100 million and £150 million.

To sign the petition, go to https://www.change.org/p/the-department-for-transport-dual-them-dual-the-a64-and-york-outer-ring-road-b1c3d278-089a-4d28-8aab-ae59b58f0e7b