(Image: York Green Party)
Campaigners are calling for action over “collapsing” road surfaces which they say are causing “chaos” for residents in a York street.
York Green Party said it has written to City of York Council “demanding new action” over the situation in Landsdowne Terrace, off Lawrence Street.
But the council said the issue has been caused by Yorkshire Water, which said it was planning to investigate the cause of the damage.
York Green Party said two large sinkholes covered by large metal covers have emerged at the bottom of Landsdowne Terrace, close to new developments, causing big problems for local residents.
A sinkhole cover in Landsdowne Terrace, off Lawrence Street in York
(Image: York Green Party)
Guildhall ward Green activist Ben Ffrench said the large sinkholes “have been there for too long”.
“The collapse of road surfaces at the bottom of Lansdowne Terrace is a blight on residents lives – two large sinkholes have been there for too long,” he said.
“It risks damaging cars and worsening the longer it is left. I've written to the council and reported this.”
A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said: “We are planning to investigate the cause of the damage to the road on Lansdowne Terrace.
“So far we've not been able to do this due to the presence of parked cars.
“We are hoping to carry out the investigation as soon as possible to determine the cause of the holes in the road.
“Once determined, the organisation responsible will carry out any necessary repairs.”
Grant Parker in the hole in Landsdown Terrace, a street away from Granville Terrace, after a 'void' opened up in 2019
(Image: Supplied)
The sinkholes in Landsdowne Terrace are a street away from Granville Terrace where a driver said he “thought Hell had opened up” when his car plunged into a hole there in 2019.
Grant Parker, speaking to The Press in May 2019, said he was driving his Volvo C30 in Granville Terrace when part of the road surface collapsed – opening up a hole in the road big enough for him to climb into.
Mr Parker said he was left with a bill of more than £200 to fix damage caused to his car by the incident on March 25, 2019.
“There was just a little mark in the road, and as I went over it, the whole car dropped at one side,” he said. "I got out and thought it was unbelievable. You could see a tunnel under the road. I thought Hell had opened up or something.”
Mr Parker added: “I actually got in the hole, it went right down and you could see right under the road.”
At the time, a City of York Council spokesperson said the hole was a “void” or a “sewer collapse”, and was not the council’s responsibility.
A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said at the time that it repaired the work, adding: “We are sorry to hear Mr Parker damaged his vehicle whilst the road surface was damaged and we repaired the road as quickly as possible once we were notified of the issue on April 3 [2019].
“In circumstances like this it is the insurance companies who resolve any claims.”