A ROW looks set to break out over a North Yorkshire town's nightclub bus service - only days after the announcement of its start date.

From the end of this month, an early morning shuttle service will collect Easingwold teenagers from the Clifton Moor nightclub Ikon and Diva, and drop them off in the town's market square.

A decision on whether the Countrywide Travel service should run at 1.45am or 2.15am will be confirmed this week.

The launch comes after negotiations between Easingwold Town councillors, the county council and police, despite opposition from residents concerned over rowdy behaviour.

Councillors who have been supporting the project claim the scheme has been "watered down" from its original outline, which included a pick-up point in central York.

"The whole point of the grant from the Countryside Agency was to promote a pilot project for six months," said Easingwold Mayor Diane Gallon.

"That project's pick-up points started in York. We need to see how that develops before we can make any hard-and-fast decision about cutting it. Further discussions are needed."

North Yorkshire County Council transport officer Ian Pearson confirmed a revision had been made, but stressed it was important to test the service's popularity before announcing another stop.

"As there are regular buses from the town centre to Clifton Moor, it seemed sensible to have just the one pick-up point," he said.

"This follows our discussions with police. We will, however, review the situation over the coming months."

Neighbouring villages are considering a similar scheme.

People in Easingwold have expressed concern about possible noise problems when the bus gets back to the town.

Updated: 12:36 Tuesday, November 12, 2002