POLICE officers have spent more than 100 hours a month walking the streets of Bentham and Ingleton in recent weeks, Sgt Kris Pappin told the North Craven area forum.

Sgt Pappin denied claims that the police were never seen on the streets and said the local division had made high visibility policing a priority. He said the time officers spent on patrol totalled more than three hours every day.

The area forum, held at Ingleton on Monday, provided a chance for local residents to quiz the police, council officers and members of the national park authority.

One resident complained that the police response to a recent lorry crash on the A65 was too slow, criticising the telephone answering system.

But Coun Mike Doyle, who sits on the Police Authority, said that initial problems with the force's control centre had been overcome.

"Eighty per cent of calls are now answered in 20 seconds," said Coun Doyle.

The ever-increasing speed and volume of motorbike traffic on the A65 was another major area of concern.

Mr Doyle, himself a careful motorcycle user, said: "We are reaching 30 deaths a year."

Six times as many tickets were issued over the last year because of the use of surveillance devices, the meeting heard.

Sgt Pappin also responded to questions about Neighbourhood Watch schemes and said the police intention was to make the existing schemes work more efficiently, rather than embark on a drive to set up more.