Cyclists and pedestrians claim the ordeal of crossing a dual carriageway where cars hurtle between Keighley and Skipton is like playing Russian Roulette.

Keighley & Craven Sustrans Supporters Group is calling on the Highways Agency to construct an underpass or a footbridge at Steeton roundabout on the Aire Valley trunk road.

They claim pedestrians walking to and from Steeton and Silsden railway station take their lives in their hands whenever they try to cross the road.

And cyclists attempting the same manoeuvre face cars and lorries whipping around the roundabout as they try to dodge two streams of traffic.

In a letter to the Highways Agency, the pressure group, which is calling for better facilities nationwide for cyclists and pedestrians, claims that when the road was built eight years ago not enough consideration was given to pedestrians and cyclists.

"Crossing this trunk road safely either by foot, wheelchair, or cycle is almost impossible,'' the letter says. "There are no clear visibility lines to see the traffic charging at you until it is too late.''

The group says something needs to be done before a new cycle-way between Lyon Road in Steeton and the railway station, proposed by Bradford Council, is set up.

The call comes after Silsden resident Caroline Goulden said she had given up using the train to get to work in Skipton because she is too frightened to cross the trunk road at the roundabout. She has reverted to using a car instead.

Sustrans member John Peet, from Silsden, a keen cyclist, said: "Trying to cross that road is hell. You take your life in your hands. The cars come round the roundabout like it's a Formula One race, especially from the Keighley direction."

And member Mike Shaw said: "It's literally like playing Russian Roulette trying to cross on a cycle. Cars are accelerating as they come round and, of course, you are much slower."

A spokesman for the Highways Agency said they had received a number of complaints about the difficulty people faced crossing the road.

"We have conducted a safety study and from that a number of recommendations have been made. We are currently assessing those but no final decision has been made," he said.

"It is not possible to guarantee whether a footbridge or underpass would be a feasible option but we can assure people we will be making the crossing area safer for people in the future."

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