LEISURE chiefs fear race-goers could be put in danger by a collapsing drain that is creating unexpected holes on York's Knavesmire.

Several mysterious gaps in the ground were discovered earlier this year along the line of a 1.6 mile (2.6km) culvert that runs across a public part of the park.

It was discovered that a 75-year-old drain that starts at the course's two mile marker and carries water to the River Ouse had begun to fall apart.

Engineers spent £70,000 carrying out emergency repairs to the brick and concrete drain, only months before the start of Royal Ascot. They blamed the problem on the age and construction of the drain.

But a CCTV inspection of several other parts of the system revealed silt blockages which council workers believe could be hiding areas of further collapse.

As a result they have recommended that further repair work takes place, but city leaders must decide how much money they want to spend.

The total bill could be as high as £272,000, meaning that other cash, including reserves earmarked for swimming pools, could be reduced.

In a report to councillors, David Meigh, head of parks and open spaces, said a hole in a busy area of Knavesmire could cause "severe operational difficulties".

He said: "Whilst outright collapse is unlikely, it is possible that if a hole were to appear in a crucial area of the Knavesmire it would cause severe operational difficulties.

"Therefore, it is recommended that strengthening works take place to approximately 800m to 1km of the brick culvert (at the north end of the park)."

He said: "An alternative riskier option is to confine the strengthening works to the area most likely to cause the most disruption if it were to collapse in terms of location.

"This is in the centre of the Knavesmire in the main area of public access to the racecourse. This would entail strengthening only 150m of the culvert." Mr Meigh has asked Councillor Keith Orrell, executive member for leisure, to approve £122,000 to cover the emergency repairs. He has also asked for a further £150,000 to fund work to prevent further collapse, and to approve reductions in existing leisure and heritage schemes to fund the gap. The meeting will take place at the Guildhall next Monday at 4.30pm.

Updated: 10:21 Wednesday, September 07, 2005