A MOTORCYCLE rider is recovering in hospital after a smash on York's outer ring road over the Bank Holiday weekend.

The man was seriously injured in the accident when his three-wheeled motorbike crashed on the eastbound carriageway of the A64 south of the A1079 junction, at Grimston Bar, at about 12.50pm on Saturday. No other vehicles were involved in the crash.

He was taken to York Hospital by paramedics and is now in a "comfortable condition" in its high-dependency unit, according to a North Yorkshire Police spokesman.

A female passenger on the motorbike, who was also injured in the smash, was discharged from hospital on the same day. The Yorkshire Air Ambulance was called the scene.

The crash brought chaos to the city on the Bank Holiday weekend as the A64 ground to a halt and roads into the city became gridlocked.

Hundreds of motorists were caught in queues up to two hours long as they headed out to enjoy the spring sunshine.

Police officers shut the eastbound carriageway of the A64 and diverted drivers from the A19 junction at Fulford, causing jams into the city.

Drivers wandered about on the dual carriageway as they waited for hours in the sunshine, while some tried to turn around and drive the wrong way down the slip road at the A19.

Motorist Malcolm Slater, of Huntington, said: "The A64 was jammed for as far as the eye could see. People were getting very frustrated and we did not know what was happening."