A row over access for refuse wagons came to a head when the keys to one of the vehicles were taken, leaving it stranded on a narrow Bradford lane.

Council officials were called yesterday to deal with the situation in Cliffe Lane, Thornton, where residents say they are at the end of their tether with heavy lorries being sent along the unmade road.

Furniture company boss Nigel Chapman claims the giant vehicles, which are designed to collect rubbish from wheelie bins recently introduced to the Bradford district, are causing thousands of pounds damage to the lane.

Mr Chapman and his neighbours have sent letters of complaint to Bradford Council -and thought the problem had been solved when the cleansing department started to send smaller sweeper lorries instead. But he says the final straw came when it sent the lighter wagon to collect the rubbish yesterday, then despatched a large lorry as well just a few hours later. The lorry was then stranded for several hours when the keys were taken from the ignition.

Council officials were called to the scene to get the lorry started again.

Mr Chapman said: "The vibration of the lorries have led to the dry stone wall completely collapsing in places and the lane has also been caused to subside because of the weight of the wagons. I couldn't believe it when they sent up a massive wagon again after all the repeated complaints we've made."

David Kennedy, Acting Director for Housing and Environmental Protection, said it was a shame the road had become blocked, possibly causing an obstruction.

He added: "Mr Chapman had raised concerns about access to his property by the collection vehicle and we have assured him we will look into this matter. We will look into his concerns in more detail and hope we can work together to find a solution."

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