'Save our cliff lift' - Whitby protest sends powerful message in driving rain and biting cold

​​The lift on Whitby’s North Terrace, which opened in 1931, has been out of service since 2022 due to corrosion and water ingress, with repair costs estimated at £5.5m.

Council bosses are set to decide on a plan to permanently close the lift next month, but campaigners today gathered on the clifftop site to let the council know in no uncertain terms that they are deeply unhappy with the closure proposal.

​More than 5,600 people have signed a petition to save the 94-year-old facility.

Speaking to the Whitby Gazette at the protest, Mayor of Whitby, Coun Sandra Turner, said it was imperative for Whitby to keep the lift.

“This shows how important it is on a day like this,” she said.

"It’s a vital part of the clifftop and important for access to the Blue Flag beach and there must be access for disabled people.

"Whitby is always in the top five most visited destinations for a seaside town and it’s part of our history here.”

Praising the town’s uniqueness, she added: "We can't change Whitby to make it the same as everywhere else.”

Benita Nicholson, who owns holiday apartments on the clifftop, said the main frustrations were that the beach should be accessible for all, and that the paths leading down to the beach were too steep for prams and wheelchairs.

She also criticised the subsidised bus service as being unreliable, inaccessible and “not fit for purpose.”

She wants to see safe and accessible services facilities for all users, including those with disabilities.

Christine Holmes and brother David Idle, who is in a wheelchair, have a beach hut on the seafront.

David said there had been a few times when the chair had slipped on sand going down the path, with the lift not being in use, and added: “It it hadn’t been for the railings, we’d have ended up in the sea a few times.”

He also pointed out that without the lift, it’s hard for peolple with breathing conditions walking up and down the zig-zag paths.

Christine said: “We’ve had the beach hut 12 years and it’s a community down there and people who really struggle can’t use them, it’s a crying shame.

"The bus wasn’t well advertised and wasn’t easy to get on and off.

"It cost a lot of money and wasn’t used so put money into fixing the lift instead.

"Wheelchairs can also run out of charge, it’s such a steep climb and that’s another factor.

"We would be grateful to get it back.”

Dave Bradley said some of the members of the U3A group in Whitby were “absolutely up in arms” and some of them cannot get down to the beach.

"Mentally they’re okay but they cannot physically get down there and it’s one of the reasons for living here.”

He also made the point that huge numbers of people over the age of 55 come to live in Whitby who are being cut off from the beach.

He took the view that the council not spending money reopening the facility was a case of “short term-ism” to make sure the budget’s okay for the next year, but not in 20 years’ time.

Campaigner Andy Jefferson added: “I see it as a disability access issue and being able to get about.

"It ties in with Whitby and Esk Valley Active Travel and wanting everyone to get around irrespective of ability.

"It’s eliminating a proportion of our town and we have an ageing population.”

A North Yorkshire Council, Scarborough and Whitby Area Committee meeting takes place on March 2 in Whitby, to discuss the lift closure plan further.