Update: Ground investigations launched at collapsed pavement in Knaresborough after landslip at tourist spot

Repairs are unlikely to happen until next year on a landslip-hit stairway in Knaresborough on a visitors walk by the viaduct on the River Nidd.

Such was the scale of the problem when it occurred at Viaduct Terrace in February that it impacted on rail passengers for a whole weekend.

As a result of the sudden ground and pavement collapse, there were temporary train cancellations on the Leeds-Harrogate-York line and emergency cordons were put in place around that section of the Waterside.

The latest news on the future of this popular spot for tourists and residents by the Nidd is that North Yorkshire Council has launched a ground investigation at the site in order to cost up repairs.

Local Lib Dem councillors Matt Walker and Hannah Gostlow have previously called on North Yorkshire Council to reclassify the incident as "urgent" to ensure repair work is carried out before winter weather risks further erosion.

But the location of the damaged stairway, in itself, is likely to result in slow progress on making the location safe to use again.

Not only does the viaduct above carry the main railway line operated by Network Rail, the site is on the edge of a listed park and is also next to what the Environment Agency classifies as a main river.

Even after the ground investigations are concluded by North Yorkshire Council, applications must then be submitted to these ‘stakeholders’ to enable work to begin.

Although the council has said it is keen to make repairs as quickly as possible, the Harrogate Advertiser understands it is likely that work won’t even start on site until mid-June 2027.

The Waterside area has also been prone to flooding on occasion over the last decade.