ANGRY traders say they may have to shut their York stalls after being told they won't be able to access Shambles Market with their vehicles until 8pm three days a week.

The traders said they were “outraged” after being informed by Make it York on Wednesday that they will not be allowed to bring their vehicles onto the site to clear stalls - and leave for home - until 8pm on Thursdays, Fridays or Saturdays in the run up to Christmas. The usual time is 6pm.

Make it York said that the move - which starts on November 14 - was due to an expected increase in footfall, and to ensure that the city remains safe while the Christmas Market is running in Parliament Street.

But chair of the Traders' Association, Kevin Tuohy, said that most traders arrive at the site from 5.45am onwards, meaning they could be working up to 15 hours a day.

He said: “I wake up at 5.30am and travel in from Pickering to arrive at the market for 6.45am. If I am unable to leave until 8pm that means I won’t get home until after 10pm.

“This is a violation of our workers' rights. How can Make it York expect us to work and have a healthy lifestyle and drive safely if we are going to get four to five hours sleep before waking up and heading back to the market?

“I won’t be able to work the number of hours I usually do because of this.”

A group of traders told The Press they had offered several alternatives to Make it York, but “had been ignored time and again".

One said: “We used to work until 5pm, and we agreed with Make it York last year that we could work until 6pm by operating a staggered system, where different traders pack up their stall at different times to prevent congestion.

“This decision is an outrage because now all regular traders and Christmas market stalls will be trying to leave simultaneously. It will cause chaos.”

John Mannion, who runs a fruit and veg stall at the market, said the decision means he will have to close down his stall over the busiest months of the year.

He said: “I have to arrive at 4.30am and with this decision, I won’t get home until 10pm.

“Make it York told us that we could leave and return to pack up our stalls but we can’t leave the store unattended in case our products are stolen.

“I am 72 and I don’t think this will be good for my health. I’ve done this job for decades and I am so sad that I may have to close. Christmas is the busiest time of the year and this is our livelihood. We need this to survive.”

Roy Dean, owner of the That Fudge Guy stall, said he will not be opening over the seven-week Christmas period due to the decision.

Another trader who has five children said she may have to find alternative work because of the ruling.

Ian Pybus, who works for the charity Minster Lions, said that the popular Christmas Rudolph ride - that has operated in St Sampson Square for decades - may also have to close.

He said: “We usually run the ride in the square before taking it to the rural villages around York, such as Dunnington and Fulford.

“The decision means that we are stuck in the city centre until 8pm so many kids may miss out this Christmas.”

Sean Bullick, managing director at Make It York, said: “The Christmas offer in the city continues to be incredibly popular and as a result of the increased footfall during this particularly busy period we have to ensure that the city centre remains a safe and enjoyable space for all.

“Following feedback from previous years and advice from local and national safety experts, we have implemented various measures to ensure the safety of those coming into the city centre.

“These include a new layout of the Christmas market to help the flow of people visiting the stalls, additional break-out space, and a number of other measures including road closures.

“At a recent meeting with Shambles Market traders and their representatives we explained that the advice from our retained experts was that, due to the volume of people in the city centre, it would not be safe to allow any vehicles to access Shambles Market before 8pm on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays for the duration of the Christmas market.

“At that meeting Make It York agreed to consider suggested alternative arrangements, however, having done so, the advice on public safety remains the same.

“Traders are not required to work until 8pm, but vehicles cannot enter the Shambles Market until this time. We do understand the concerns the traders have and we are continuing to work to find ways to minimise any impact.

“Make It York’s paramount responsibility and concern is to ensure that those working in the city and attending the Christmas markets can do so in a safe environment and the measures being rolled out this year are in response to this.”

A spokesman for the Traders' Association said that many traders were only told of the decision via an email on Wednesday last week.