A £4 MILLION road upgrade scheme has been approved to stop four junctions in Scarborough reaching a critical mass of traffic.

North Yorkshire County Council and Scarborough Borough Council have secured funding from the York North Yorkshire and East Riding Local Enterprise Partnership (YNYER LEP) to make a number of improvements in areas where new housing is being built.

It follows a report earlier this year that warned that without action the roads could become gridlocked and leave motorists facing even bigger delays on the main arteries into and out of Scarborough.

The areas set to benefit from the £3.875m scheme are the junctions of Stepney Road and Stepney Drive, Scalby Road and Manor Road, Scalby Road and Stepney Drive, and Scalby Road and Falsgrave Road.

The proposed works include the widening of existing roundabouts and approach lanes, new and altered signals and changes to roads in the areas of the junctions.

The North Yorkshire County Council report stated that the four junctions will be “approaching capacity” if proposed housing schemes come to fruition and this could negatively impact on residents and also local businesses.

The borough council and the county council have both pledged £150,000 towards the scheme, with the LEP putting in £3.5m. A further £75,000 will come from Section 106 money.

Last Tuesday, North Yorkshire County Council’s executive committee voted to accept the funding from the LEP.

Now, a public consultation and the completion of the full design work will now be undertaken before work on the roads begins.