TWO men died and more than 20 people were hurt as a coach crash and another fatal road accident brought motoring chaos to the Bank Holiday break.

And travellers on the region's rail network were left struggling to get away, hours after a derailment caused lengthy delays.

One of the road accidents killed motorcyclist Ian Brooks, 42, from Stamford Bridge, who was thrown into a ditch when his bike was in collision with a Jaguar car near the Bumper Castle pub, in Wigginton Road.

He was rushed to York District Hospital after the crash, but doctors there pronounced him dead.

Six hours later, a second crash claimed the life of a coach driver from the West Yorkshire area.

The 49-year-old married man who has not yet been named, died on the A1 after his Wallace Arnold 48-seater Volvo coach crashed into a field at Ainderby Quernhow, near Thirsk.

The coach was carrying 26 mainly elderly passengers home to the North-East.

They were all taken to the Friarage Hospital, Northallerton, 20 of them with minor injuries. Two people were kept in overnight for observation.

Christine Appleby, a spokeswoman for Leeds-based Wallace Arnold, said the crash was an extreme shock to the firm.

The modern coach was fitted with all the latest safety equipment, she said.

Representatives from Wallace Arnold made sure the passengers got home safely.

Police are conducting an investigation, and anyone with information should contact TC Mark Thompson on 01423 505541.

Officers are also seeking information about the York crash, which meant diversions had to be set up to take traffic on to Crichton Avenue and through Clifton Moor until 7pm last night.

Police want to hear from anyone who saw one or two motorcyclists following an articulated lorry near the Bumper Castle pub.

The Jaguar driver, John Andrew Taplin, 36, from Wigan, was arrested and was today still helping police with their inquiries.

On the railways, travellers were hit by long delays after yesterday's derailment of a freight wagon on the East Coast Mainline near Hambleton, halfway between York and Doncaster.

Passengers faced waits of between an hour and 90 minutes, but trains were getting back to normal this morning.

Railtrack engineers were unable to move the derailed train until about 6pm last night, leaving the GNER East Coast service from King's Cross running on a single line.

Virgin and EWS trains heading north were diverted at Doncaster.

Traveller Dave Elliott, who was going home to Scarborough from Peterborough said: "The train was delayed for a long time, it was very overcrowded and I am very angry."

A spokesman for AA Roadwatch said the roads in the region were very wet this morning but there were no major problems and the poor weather could mean fewer people travelling to coastal destinations.

He added: "With the weather there could be more people going to the shops and traffic at the shopping outlets around York could be very busy."

The transport problems start what is traditionally one of the busiest weekends for travellers as people attempt to get away for the Bank Holiday.

Yesterday, an estimated 210,000 headed out of London's Heathrow airport, with 590,000 more expected though its doors over the weekend.

Thomas Cook named Paris and Amsterdam as the top Bank Holiday city break destinations, with Florida the most popular choice overall.

Meanwhile, holidaymakers with First Choice are favouring Europe, with Majorca, Cyprus and Turkey making the top three.

PICTURE: The scene after the crash in Wigginton Road, York, in which a mtorcyclist was killed (David Harrison)