FURIOUS Burnley residents have voiced their anger at county council plans which could see 400 cars and lorries rolling past their homes every day.

The fury has been sparked by proposals to move its engineering services depot from its current base at Princess Way to land off Gannow Lane - close to hundreds of homes on Gannow Lane, Sunderland Street and Bradley Gardens.

Locals say the site will increase traffic levels in an already busy area, increase noise levels and affect property prices, and they have been backed in some of their concerns by the head of planning at Burnley Council.

But the county council says it needs to move the site because the current base is needed for the multi-million pound re-development of Burnley College.

A meeting about the plans was held on Tuesday and residents are set to lobby councillors from Burnley Council's Development Control Committee when they discuss the plans tonight.

Barrie Holland, 62, retired, of Gannow Lane, is leading the residents opposed to the scheme. He said: "There are going to be a huge number of vehicles using the site every day with the workforce's cars and the lorries and that will get worse in the winter when the gritter lorries need to go out.

"The traffic down there is bad enough as it is without adding to it. The noise and amount of traffic just doesn't bear thinking about. There are also concerns about the fuel dump which is going to be on the site because we have all seen what can happen at fuel depots with the accident at Buncefield."

Susan Graham, head of planning at Burnley Council, said she shared the concerns about the traffic and the noise.

She added: "I have concerns about the location of the depot on this site. A high volume of traffic, around 400 vehicle movements per day, is generated and this, along with activity on the site, would be likely to result in noise disturbance to neighbouring residents.

"Road access to the depot would be via Gannow Lane with the route passing through residential areas with the likely consequence of adverse effects on residents from traffic noise.

"Proper functioning of the engineering depot is obviously vital to efficient operation of the highway network. However, a main road location with good access, away from residential property would be preferable."

Council leader Gordon Birtwistle said: "The site is not where the borough council want this development to go, but it is not up to us. What I will do is everything I can to help and try to find an alternative site, if there is one available."

However County Councillor Tony Martin said: "We have been given notice to quit our current site by Burnley Council and that means we have to find an alternative site.

"We have looked at numerous sites and this is the least worst we could find.

"I can understand the residents' concerns and I sympathise with them but this situation is of the borough council's making."