RESIDENTS living near England's steepest A-road have vowed to battle on after their bid to stop traffic causing misery outside their homes was rejected.

Campaigners in Sutton-under-Whitestonecliffe, near Thirsk, said while North Yorkshire County Council was set to start work at Sutton Bank on a £250,000 scheme, including the reinstatement of crash barriers, their appeal to ban unsuitable vehicles from that stretch of the A170 had fallen on deaf ears.

After suffering decades of tailbacks outside their homes as lorries become stranded on the three one-in-four gradient sections or the hairpin bend of the road, and damage to their properties, in March the parish council applied for a Traffic Regulation Order to prevent non-local HGVs from using the road.

A sign at the foot of the bank states there have been more than 100 blockages by HGVs over the last year, which villagers say is wasting hundreds of hours of police time.

Parish council chairman Caroline Artingstoll said the campaign and online petition was continuing to receive overwhelming support, but the county council had said it could not put a weight restriction on the road as it is part of the primary route network.

She said: "The response was quite disappointing to us and a bit of a blow.

"The council appears quite happy to allow HGVs that find they can't get up Sutton Bank to keep reversing for 1.8 miles until they get to a point where they can turn off the road.

"We are not giving up and will meet Thirsk and Malton MP Kevin Hollinrake to see if he can asks questions about this issue in Parliament."

Cllr Artingstoll said efforts were now being focused on getting funding to buy land for a turning circle for HGVs and caravans.

A county council spokeswoman said the campaigner's application to ban some HGVs had been rejected as the A170 was a key regional route.

She said the authority had put in measures to limit blockages, through maintenance and signage, adding: "The authority also installed a weather station and camera to provide remote monitoring to ensure the bank remains passable to vehicles and to ensure a quick and effective response to any incidents."

The council, which is working to cut £167 million from its budget, has told the campaigners it does not have funds to buy land for a turning circle, but would spend £250,000 on essential work at Sutton Bank.

The work, starting on September 7, will see the road closed for two weeks.