PLANS to close a major link road between two Ryedale towns this summer could be disastrous for traders, it has been claimed.

Part of Norton Road, Norton, will shut for 14 weeks from Monday, to allow a flood defence pumping station to be built.

District council chiefs said the closure of the road between Norton and Malton was essential, but business owners are not convinced.

Mark Campbell, of Campbell's Chainsaws, Malton, said his business would be badly hit, and road congestion worsened, as motorists struggled to travel between the towns.

Mr Campbell, who runs the business with his father, said: "A lot of people use the road as a cut-through and people who want to get to us from Norton will have to go the long way round.

"Surely they can do this work without having to shut the road completely for 14 weeks?"

David Summers, Ryedale District Council property manager, said some pedestrian access would be maintained but, for health and safety reasons, the road would be shut once work on the pumping station began in earnest.

Mr Summers said: "The idea is to get in and out as quickly as we can. People have been fairly positive because they recognise the essential nature of the work."