ROADS around Hutton Rudby village green might have to be widened for twenty-first century traffic, it has been suggested.

Work is being considered because the green has become badly ploughed up by cars, vans and lorries. Deep trenches have been cut into the verges because motorists are forced on to the green to pass other vehicles.

Rudby Parish Council is already paying for concrete reinforcement blocks along the worst-eroded verges, but it suspects extra measures will have to be considered.

If road-widening work was to go ahead, the parish council would have to follow lengthy county council and parliamentary procedures.

It recently blamed a County Durham coal firm for tyre tracks along North Side and is waiting for a response. Photographs of tyre marks were sent to the firm, which the council claims should pay for the repair work.

However, at its latest meeting, it received a series of complaints about traffic, pavements and the green from a resident.

In her letter to the council, E Flavell, of North Side, claimed the green had been in poor condition "for months if not years". She called for widened roads and new footpaths.

"We are in the twenty-first century and most households have cars. The green would be better if roads were widened and bollards were erected. The green is a great attraction and these measures would preserve it for the future.

"In my area, it is in appalling condition. We need serious, radical action and cannot live in the past," she wrote.

Chairman, Coun John Richardson, responded: "Erosion is a problem and the damage looks far worse in winter. We have spent £1,600 on concrete blocks and boulders to deter vehicles from verges. However, the other part of the problem concerns whether we are allowed to encroach on to the green.

"If the only solution is to widen roads, that work would need to be done by North Yorkshire County Council and would cost a considerable amount. Bear in mind, the estimated cost of a pavement at Drumrauck Hall is £14,500."

Coun Peter Markey said parliamentary approval was needed to encroach on to the green.

But Coun Carolyn Seymour thought rules governing greens had changed, meaning encroachment for the common good was permissible. However, approval was still needed from the county council. She advised the parish to seek advice from the county legal department. She also warned against yellow lines or other restrictions, as these moved congestion elsewhere.

Coun Richardson stressed: "Road widening is the only long-term solution. Surely we must accept that the work carried out 40 years ago is not now adequate?"

Clerk, Ann Pyle, recalled: "Years ago, there was an attempt to put posts along the verges, but they were pulled out overnight. People thought the green shouldn't be fenced in."

Coun Irene MacDonald had seen old photographs of the green and said: "In the past, it was very uneven and smaller than now."

While councillors had some sympathy with Mrs Flavell, they did not feel traffic speed was a major problem. They would contact the county council for advice.