More than 1,000 cars were abandoned in the Bradford district in just 12 months.

Some were simply left at the roadside, others as eyesores in fields, parks and at local beauty spots.

But, in every case, the owners dumped the vehicles - many of them untaxed and unlicensed - because that is a cheaper option than taking them to have them crushed.

New figures revealed to Parliament show Bradford had 1,025 cars dumped in 2004/05, with 675 abandoned in Kirklees and a further 308 in Calderdale - the equivalent of 5.5 cars a day across those three areas.

Now the Government is being urged to take action to make it easier for people to have their cars crushed, particularly as there is a target to cut the number of abandoned vehicles by 25 per cent by 2008.

Investigating and removing nuisance vehicles costs local authorities across the country a total of £26 million annually while vehicle arson costs £230 million a year to clean up. In Bradford, the cost of clearing abandoned vehicles eats up a budget of £100,000 a year.

The Government announced in June 2003 that until 2007 the last owner of the vehicle would continue to have responsibility for its disposal instead of the manufacturer. This is standard practice throughout the EU but it is creating a huge abandoned car mountain in Britain.

Liberal Democrat environment spokesman Chris Huhne acknowledged that although local authorities were cracking down on the problem, the Government needed to do more.

"This enormous heap of abandoned cars represents yet another entry to the long list of environmental neglect and decay with which communities are blighted," he said.

"By making the final owner of the car foot the bill until 2007 the Government is continuing making dumping cars more attractive than recycling.

"If the Government is serious about the environment then it must make recycling vehicles more attractive than simply abandoning them."

Manufacturers, he said, should meet the bill, which would save councils millions of pounds having to crush abandoned cars.

Two years ago the Government gave local authorities extra powers to quickly seize and destroy dumped cars.

The move came amid warnings that abandoned vehicle numbers had risen sharply during the previous five years and were expected to double by 2008 The powers introduced to enable councils to remove the vehicles immediately to a place of safety and then crush them.

Bradford Council's abandoned car department has a budget of £100,000 each year to cover the costs of removing this blight from the district's streets, parks and woods.

Damien Fisher, principal officer for the Council's street scene department which is responsible for keeping the district tidy, explained that the change in legislation had made it easier for the council to remove abandoned cars with the help of West Yorkshire Police.

"Three or four years ago we had hundreds of cars littered around the streets. The old legislation meant that we had to wait seven days before moving a car, now the new powers enable us to move cars within 24 hours and now it's very rare you will see any abandoned cars out in the district which is great for the streets of Bradford," said Mr Fisher.

Mr Fisher said that the general public were more aware of abandoned cars and were more pro-active in getting in touch with the police to get them removed.

"The public have every right to get in touch with us because these vehicles tend to attract vandals and can often end up burnt out."

He emphasised that clearing away dumped or abandoned vehicles was just as important for the Council as clearing up litter in terms of keeping the district clean and tidy for residents and visitors.

If anyone has seen a vehicle which they believe has been abandoned they should get in touch with the police through their local police station or by calling 0845 6060606. For untaxed vehicles telephone the DVLA hotline on 08000 325202.

Uninsured drivers targeted in crackdown

Two areas of Bradford have made it into the top ten "hall of shame" for harbouring the highest number of uninsured drivers according to a survey by the Motor Insurers' Bureau.

Barkerend and the BD8 postal area both featured on the list alongside parts of Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham.

Barkerend, which came in second behind the West Gorton area of Manchester, was classed as having six times the national average of uninsured drivers. And the BD8 postal area had four times the national average for uninsured drivers.

Association of Chief Police Officers' spokesman Chief Constable Meredydd Hughes said: "We know that people who do not pay for tax or insurance are often involved in other forms of criminal activity. By targeting vehicles and focusing police activity in specific areas, the police are able to effectively deal with criminals who use the road."

How authorities deal with abandoned cars
  • Police take calls from the public alerting them to cars which they believe may have been dumped.
  • Officers check the registration using the DVLA vehicle database to see whether it has a registered owner. Abandoned vehicles are classed as those without an owner.
  • The police then contact the Council which arranges for a contractor to remove the car after the 24-hour notice period has lapsed.
  • The car is taken to a depot where it is stored for seven days.
  • It has to be drained of oils and fluids, the batteries have to be removed and the airbags inside the car also have to be degassed before it can be crushed or sold on for scrap.
  • Bradford Council, with the DVLA and West Yorkshire Police, ran a pilot scheme between May and June this year in which 162 untaxed vehicles were hit with a roadside fine of £200 or the car would be towed away.