A NORTH Yorkshire village has stepped up its campaign for a bypass after waiting more than 20 years for a new road.

Residents in Killinghall have been told that it could be at least 2006 before they are considered for a new road to end thousands of vehicles a day driving through the village on the A61, between Harrogate and Ripon.

Now, in a David versus Goliath battle, Killinghall Parish Council has stepped up its campaign by writing to the Government asking for a rethink under the protest banner Stop Killing Killinghall.

Earlier, North Yorkshire County Council revealed available cash would allow only one major scheme every five years. A bypass in the Scarborough area recently took priority over Killinghall.

Parish council chairman Anne Holdworth said it was seeking urgent support from the Government.

Meanwhile, Councillor Mike Bury, who represents the village on Harrogate Borough Council, said: "People think it's highway robbery. We have been promised a bypass for years and thought we would get one after such a long wait.

"Things are so serious, parents won't let their children cross the main road to buy a packet of sweets. It's just too dangerous with the never-ending stream of traffic. In a way, our village is sliced in two by the A61, and in reality we want our village back, which has been taken over by roaring traffic."