THE A59 through Kex Gill gorge should be closed for good if a new multi-million pound diversion is given the go ahead.

Allowing cyclists, walkers and horse rider on the old road would be too dangerous, Craven councillors have agreed

The Craven area committee meeting in Settle, called on the public to show support for a new road by pass the present route at Blubberhouses which is frequently blocked by land slides.

Four possible options have been put forward by North Yorkshire County Council, estimated to cost between £33 million and £40 million and would see a new stretch of road of about three miles long across the valley.

All options start from the same point at Kex Gill Farm, and follow a bridleway along the north edge of the valley, returning to the A59 at the turn off to Otley at Church Hill.

The project, which had the backing of Skipton MP Julian Smith, was vital to the economic life of not just Craven and Harrogate but the wider region, councillors agreed.

Craven area highways officer James Malcolm told councillors that the hillside above the road was constantly been monitored for any movement and for the "ferocity" of the water levels.

The most recent landslip happened in early 2016 and resulted in a road closure of about eight weeks.

Motorists had to be routed along a six mile diversion through towns and communities deemed unsuitable to the volume and nature of the vehicles.