Plans for a new railway station to serve a town near York have run into trouble after a householder discovered it could overlook his home.

Colin Holmes, of York Road, Haxby, was not best chuffed when he received a leaflet through his letterbox suggesting a location for the station near his garden and conservatory which would spoil his view of Garrowby Hill.

The leaflet was the first he had heard of the possible site - which he and his wife Kathleen believe would be inconvenient to most of the village as it is three-quarters of a mile from the centre.

He has written to Jonathan Hepton of the City of York Council transport planning unit to complain.

Mr Holmes said: "The platform will be about nine or ten feet from our fence and we'll have people looking down in to our conservatory which we use as a dining area.

"At the moment the trains go past at quite a speed so it's not too much of a problem but if this station gets built there will be people standing on the platforms and getting on and off trains looking into our house."

Mr Holmes is also worried the increase in noise and pollution would add to the problems they get from stationary traffic and buses in York Road where traffic queues to use the level crossing.

He said: "We get all that pollution on one side and we don't want it on the other.

"We've got enough problems at the moment."

Jonathan Hepton said the Haxby Gates site was only a possibility and the Haxby Station Road site was still the preferred option.

"We are examining all the options," he said and insisted the diagram Mr Holmes had received was only a sketch.

The council put in a bid for government funding for a station at Station Road, Haxby, in 1998 but when it was turned down they decided to consider alternative sites. Mr Hepton said: "In order to consider the advantages and disadvantages of different options we are doing an environmental impact assessment, a transport impact assessment and will be consulting with Railtrack on the operational aspects.

"When we have more information we'll invite people to make comments. We want people to come on board with us on this, so it's in our interests to do that."

Jeffrey Crook, another York Road resident, echoed Mr Holmes' views.

He said the leaflet was the first he had heard of the proposal and he didn't think the council had taken the right approach in consulting residents. He said: "I just don't think it would be used sufficiently if it was down here rather than in the village.

"If there was a station behind our houses it would be built up to about 14 feet above the level of our garden and we would be staring at a blank wall.

"It's a ridiculous option."

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