Fears of gridlock at the petrol pumps (From Gazette & Herald)

Fears of gridlock at the petrol pumps

TRAFFIC chaos in Malton and Norton is predicted after a second garage announced it is to cease selling petrol, meaning the number of garages in the twin towns has this year been halved from four to two.

"We already have a problem with traffic queuing to get into the petrol stations in a market town environment," said self-employed driving instructor Malcolm Pearson, of Pearson's Driving School. "With one less garage, the pressure will be even greater."

Earlier this year, the site known as Stable Garage on Welham Road, Norton, closed when the company which owns it, Tyke 2000, decided to consolidate its business at its other site, the Total garage, on Church Street, Norton.

"With more people using the garage on Church Street, there is added pressure on the traffic right along that road and onto Norton Road along the railway," said Mr Pearson.

"That area is bad enough anyway, with traffic coming in so many directions and the railway crossing to take into account, without the added problem of people queuing to get on to the garage forecourt.

"At 2pm in the afternoon, when the shift at the Malton Bacon Factory changes, Norton is totally gridlocked."

Now Vince Chapman, of Chapman's Garage on Beverley Road, Malton, has announced it will become a repair-only garage in May, once his supply of petrol runs out and he ceases selling it, explaining: "It is just not financially viable any more."

Mr Pearson said: "This means we are left with only J B Motors in Malton and the Total garage in Norton, which will mean the traffic queuing to get into both will be greater than ever."

Tony Boorman, director of Tyke 2000, said: "People should be aware in Malton and Norton that they are losing nearly all their local petrol stations and there is a very good reason for that. There is very little money in petrol these days.

"People seem to think it is our fault we have had to close a petrol station. In fact, we have been forced to consolidate to remain open.

"We've increased our wages, due to the minimum wage, and rates are going up. In the meantime, margins on fuel are decreasing.

"We are not causing any traffic problems. If people see a queue on the forecourt, they drive on, and we expected that.

"We have lost trade by closing the second garage. We knew that would happen, but it was our only chance of survival," he added.

"We are a small family firm which has been selling petrol in Malton for 30 years. We know what we're doing, and if we hadn't taken these measures people would have been looking at going to Scarborough or York for their petrol."

Rural garages across the country are closing down due to dwindling profit margins on petrol.

Mr Boorman added: "Petrol is the cheapest retailable liquid; we make more money selling a bottle of water than we do a litre of petrol."

Malton and Norton town centre manager Peter Mudge said: "The very last thing we want in the towns is empty petrol stations. It makes the area look tacky and makes it look like things aren't good in the area.

"I do feel that it's a matter of market forces, and if there's a niche there it should be filled.

"It is problematic but this is what we need to be doing. I will be speaking with highways and the district council about the issue."

Stewart Hurst, group engineer responsible for the Malton and Norton traffic management study at North Yorkshire County Council, said: "This is the first time the issue of petrol stations has been highlighted to us, but as part of our work improving traffic in the twin towns we have already identified the level crossing area in Norton as a major area of concern."

Updated: 11:29 Wednesday, April 28, 2004