A NEW pipeline built under the railway line in Norton will mean emergency pumps can be deployed more easily during flooding.

The pipeline, built by Yorkshire Water, has been welcomed by local councillors.

Currently, when the pumps are deployed as part of Malton and Norton’s emergency flood plan, the pumping has to stop whenever a train goes past - as the pipe from the pumps needs to be placed across the train track to get to the river.

Yorkshire Water said that the new pipeline goes under the railway track and allows the pump to continuously run and therefore be more effective, as it won’t have to intermittently stop.

They added that this will make the pump easier to deploy, safer, more effective and help to reduce flood risk to homes and businesses.

Eve Pierrepont, flood risk engineer for Yorkshire Water, said this is just one of the projects the company has been working on in the Malton and Norton area.

“We’re very pleased to be starting this vital piece of work to reduce the impact our emergency flood plan has on the local community,” she said.

“We’ve been working with Network Rail to make sure this work is done safely and we’re thankful for their help in delivering this project with us.

“This is just a small part of the work we’re doing to reduce flood risk in Malton and Norton.

“As well as having our emergency pump plan, we’ve gifted Ryedale District Council with some pumps they can deploy themselves and we’re creating a model of the catchment in the area so we can understand how water flows through our sewers to better understand the flooding issues in the area.”

The emergency pump plan was developed in partnership with Yorkshire Water, North Yorkshire County Council, Ryedale District Council and the Environment Agency.

Di Keal, long-standing flood campaigner and Ryedale district and town councillor for Norton West, said: “This is very welcome news and one more piece in the jigsaw of flood protection that we need in Norton, Malton and Old Malton to alleviate flooding.

“The installation of this under-track pipeline is great news as it will help residents and businesses in Norton cope better when the community is faced with flooding as it should reduce the need for prolonged road closures.

“Ultimately we need increased permanent pumping capacity in Norton, but this development, along with the extra emergency pumps that the town councils hope to provide, should make a big difference to how we are able to manage flood events in the future.”

The pumps are deployed to reduce the risk of homes and businesses in the area flooding.

Recent years have seen several significant flood events, which have led to homes near the river flooding and closures of Church Street.