HELMSLEY Town Council has published a report on the town’s growing traffic woes.

The inaugural Traffic Report, released last week, was prepared by the town council in response to the increasing number of complaints about traffic-related issues.

The report says it has been produced “to inform the responsible agencies of the daily dilemma faced by road and footpath users in Helmsley, both residents and visitors”.

The town authority has no direct responsibility for traffic and parking issues - that lies at district and county levels - but it hopes the report will help make clear the issues that the town is facing and help the wider authorities to identify and tackle problems.

The report is broken down into three key areas: parking, traffic and road safety.

On traffic, the report says: “Whether it is the increase use of satellite navigation systems, the popularity of Helmsley as a destination, the growth in the use of powerful, very fast and very noisy motorcycles, the increased housing in Helmsley or the ability to speed in Helmsley almost without sanction, Helmsley traffic is reaching arguably threatening levels.”

Town councillor Chris Parkin, who researched and wrote the report, said it was about informing the responsible public authorities of the issues.

“One of the headline issues is that we were promised a review of traffic in 2014 and we’re still not anywhere near it,” he said. “And while we recognise the expertise of Highways, they don’t live in the towns.

“We’ll be looking at opening discussions with the powers that be; I want an all-agency approach to address some of the issues in here.”

The document is described as a work-in-progress. As matters become resolved they will be deleted from the report, and as other issues are raised, they will be added.

Cllr Parkin said: “It’s a rolling programme - there is no definitive end date to it.”

The report includes a section of recommendations from members of the public and visitors.

These include ideas about speed restrictions on various streets, rumble strips, a one-way system in the town centre, and more speed monitoring.

The town council’s report comes amid mounting calls for action in other places such as Malton and Norton, suggesting that, across Ryedale, the road infrastructure of the market towns is beginning to creak under the pressures of growth.

The full report can be read on the Helmsley Town Council website at helmsleytowncouncil.co.uk