A plan to replace the historic funfair at the top of Shipley Glen tramway with houses is likely to go ahead - despite thousands of protests.

Shipley Area Planning Panel has been advised by council officers to approve outline permission for homes on the site on Prod Lane.

Funfair owner Paul Teale said he had no option but to come up with the "contingency plan" because of rising running costs - but said he hoped to keep the pleasure park open for another two years.

Mr Teale, who bought the fair from his uncle Harry Teale in 1967, said it was a difficult decision to make but closure was inevitable.

"The thing that broke my back when I ran it for the first 17 years was the rising insurance premiums," said Mr Teale, who now leases the site to tenants after failing to sell the attraction as a going concern.

"Now my tenants have the changes in the Uniform Business Rate hanging over them. There are time bombs waiting to go off and we've agreed between us that if they do within the next two years it's instant closure."

The Telegraph & Argus revealed in August last year that Shipley Glen Tramway, which leads up to the funfair and is run by the Glen Tramway Preservation Company charitable trust, was on the brink of closure after a 30 per cent annual drop in visitors and a massive insurance hike.

It was saved at the 11th hour by Bradford Council, which stepped in with a one-off £20,000 rescue package.

Today protesters - who drew up a 2,200 signature-petition to oppose the scheme - said they feared building houses on the site would mean the end for the Victorian tramway.

Campaigner Mike Short said the plan to close the fair was a huge blow for Shipley Glen and the district's heritage.

"It's a massive shock that this is to be approved and not only will it mean the end of the popular fairground but it's bound to mean the tramway will close too," said Mr Short, who lives opposite the pleasure park and used to visit it as a child.

"When we collected signatures for the petition we discovered that people who had moved away came back from all over the country, and the world, to see the tramway and the fair."

The fair is the last commercial venture in Prod Lane - the former Japanese Gardens, Ivy House Cafe and Shipley Glen Nurseries were all sold off for housing.

The fair's historical attractions include the Aerial Glide, which was built in 1905 and initially called the Cape to Cairo Railway, and the penny arcade.

Tramway trustee Richard Freeman said he was disappointed that Bradford Council planning officers had recommended that the application be approved by councillors.

"It will adversely affect the revenue and visitor numbers for the tramway but we are certain that the tramway will keep on running," he said.

"We are having difficulties in getting volunteers and sometimes we have problems in running the tramway but it is a popular attraction and we are sure it will run for years. It will survive on its own and we have a committed trust to ensure that."

Councillor Anne Hawkesworth, whose executive portfolio includes leisure, said she was "extremely disappointed".

"It would be really regrettable if we were to lose this. I personally would be very much against it," she said.

"I am sure there will be lots of objections and there will be a big fight over it. The fair is part of the social history of the district."

She added: "We (Bradford Council) gave money for the tramway to be kept and expected that the fairground would also benefit from the action."

Councillor Tony Miller (Lab, Shipley East) said: "An enormous amount of effort from everybody has been put in to try to get the Shipley tram on a stable footing to be enjoyed by everyone.

"If we were to lose the fairground it would be the death of the tram too.

"But I can understand the developer's side that the fairground isn't making money."