Updated: A MOTORCYCLIST has been killed in a collision with a tractor on a rural road near York.

The 41-year-old man from Selby was travelling with another motorcyclist along Greengales Lane, from Wheldrake to Elvington, when the accident happened shortly after 11am yesterday. The driver of the tractor was uninjured.

North Yorkshire Police have now launched an investigation into the tragedy and are appealing to anyone who was in the area at the time to get in touch.

Traffic Constable Yvonne Taylor, of North Yorkshire Police’s Road Policing Group, said: “I would appeal to anyone who witnessed the collision or saw either vehicle prior to the collision to contact the police with information.

“The motorcyclist was travelling in the company of another motorcycle and anybody who saw the two bikes or the tractor in the area around the time of the incident may have information vital to the investigation.”

The identity of the dead man has not yet been released.

Police said he was travelling on a grey Suzuki and that the collision involved a tractor outside Raker Lakes fishing ponds. The road was closed until 3.10pm, while investigations took place.

The incident comes a week after figures revealed a rise in the number of biker deaths close to York and Selby.

While the number of people killed or seriously injured on the county’s roads dropped by 52 last year, there was a rise in the number of serious incidents involving motorcycles.

In Selby, all four fatalities on the roads last year were bikers.

Anyone who has information on yesterdays crash, which they think could help the police with their enquiries, is asked to phone TC Yvonne Taylor, of North Yorkshire Police, on 0845 60602478.