MOTORISTS who ignore a traffic-busting master plan during Royal Ascot at York will find their access to the racecourse blocked.

And those who park in "no-waiting" areas on the route could find their vehicles towed away, under the provisions of the management scheme which aims to save York from gridlock when pageantry and horse racing comes to the city in June.

Developed with the backing of bus, taxi and train operators, as well as the Highways Agency and the security services, the plan aims simply to direct all vehicles into York through the A64.

As reported in later editions of yesterday's Evening Press, Bond Hill Ash junction, on the A64 and A1036, will be the main "front door" to the event and will use two lanes of traffic.

Car parking, for the tens of thousands of vehicles travelling to York, will be at both ends of Knavesmire, with Sim Balk Lane and a temporary roadway leading to a car park housing 60 per cent of the Ascot traffic.

This will avoid the use of the roads in Bishopthorpe. Royal Enclosure badge holders will be parking on land next to the racecourse. There will be extensive controls on on-street parking, which will cover a very wide area around the racecourse, with temporary no waiting cones restricting traffic between 9am and 7pm every day.

Peter Evely, head of network management for City of York Council, said: "If someone doesn't take any notice of the restrictions, then their vehicles will be removed."

People travelling into the city after the morning rush hour will be asked to use the A19 Fulford Road, while Tadcaster Road will be closed outbound at the Moor Lane junction, so race traffic can access the car parks quickly.

Bus services, except Coastliner, will run as normal and a new fleet of buses will be brought in by First to run shuttle services from York Station.

Park&Ride services will run to 9pm - with Askham Bar operating until midnight. The scheme will cost about £220,000 and will be met by Ascot and funding from Yorkshire Forward.

Mr Evely said: "We need to make sure residents are protected against their streets being used as car parks."

He said the council would achieve that placing barriers in areas like South Bank, which make the streets accessible only to residents.

Of the A64 plan, he said anyone who tried to get to the racecourse by a different means would find barriers and police officers blocking their progress.

"Moving the equivalent of 90 per cent of the entire population of Selby into and out of York in the space of a few hours simply cannot be done without causing disruption and some difficulties to normal patterns of daily life."

Updated: 10:35 Tuesday, March 08, 2005