Furious residents in Bingley have launched a petition to call a halt to the town's 'intolerable' car boot sale.

Members of Bailey Hills Action Group object to the Sunday sale at the former auction mart site in Keighley Road because they said it brings the town to a standstill each week.

They also claim people flocking to the sale cause congestion by parking on Bailey Hills Road, Lock View and Cemetery Road, off Keighley Road. And they say residents are woken at 6.30am by traders setting up stalls.

In a letter to the Shipley Area Committee, which will discuss the 69-signature petition at a meeting tonight, protester Fred Crowther said: "There was a complete blockage one time on Bailey Hills Road. Goodness knows what would have happened if an ambulance or fire engine had been required. People have become so frustrated with the situation they have signed a petition."

Mr Crowther said parked cars caused traffic jams along Keighley Road up to Crossflatts and Beckfoot Bridge.

Julie Wild, of Bailey Hills Road, said she signed the petition because she was fed up with not being able to park outside her own house.

She said: "During the week this is such a quiet area but it's bedlum on a Sunday. If we go out while the car boot sale is on, we often get back to find our space has gone."

Councillor David Heseltine (Con, Bingley), who is also chairman of the area committee, said he sympathised with residents but, because the sale had been running for many years, the committee would not legally be able to stop it.

"We will be looking at ways in which we may be able to make Sundays in Bingley more pleasant and this will involve meetings with police, the Highways Agency and managers of the site," he said.

Tonight's meeting is at Victoria Hall, Saltaire, at 7pm.