A CYCLIST is locked in battle with highways officials after his bike was brought to a shuddering halt by a pencil-shaped hole in a road surface.

Greengrocer Jonathan Wilson said he had been riding steadily close to the kerb on the A167 East Road, by the former Northallerton Prison site, when his front and back wheels plunged down a deep gap between a drain cover and the road in September.

He said the impact of the incident damaged the 25mm wide wheels beyond repair and, after notifying North Yorkshire County Council of the issue, and lodged a damages claim, as motorists are invited to do when they hit a pothole.

The 44-year-old said it appeared the metal drain cover had warped and did not have a casting on its lip or frame, as other similar covers do, to prevent bike wheels from being buckled.

He while he had been shocked by the initial incident, he had been stunned by the response from the highways authority in November, which rejected his £250 claim saying there was no defect with the cover.

After being advised by his insurer's legal team to obtain the council's inspection report into the drain cover, he waited a further two months to be told by the authority that no further information would be provided.

Mr Wilson: "I've been a keen cyclist for 20 years and I steer clear of rough road surfaces, but there was no way of spotting this gap until I was over it."

He said the replacing his wheels had been an unwanted expense, but he was battling the authority on principle.

He added: "There's legislation protecting motorists from this sort of incident, but nothing for cyclists, it's a grey area.

"I've been told the council does not want to pay compensation as it could set a precedent, leaving it eligible for having to pay out for putting other cyclists into the danger zone or having to replace drain covers like the one I rode over.

"We have the Tour de Yorkshire coming through Northallerton in May and local authorities are pushing people to get on their bikes, yet roads in North Yorkshire are dangerous."

After being provided with a statement from Mr Wilson outlining his claim, a council spokeswoman declined to comment, saying it would only discuss such matters with those directly involved.

She said: "We have a robust inspection regime in place to ensure that all actionable defects are identified and repaired."