A COUNCILLOR today slammed residents and business people as the row over a controversial new traffic system escalated.

Ashley Whalley, executive member for regeneration at Blackburn with Darwen Council, hit out after hearing complaints about Blackburn's new orbital route, which aims to take traffic away from the town centre via a "ring road".

Work on the scheme has left many motorists at a standstill as roads from the M65 junction at Whitebirk to Eanam have been gridlocked.

Residents living in Eanam and Audley joined local business people to voice concern over the new scheme, about which they claim they have not been properly consulted.

Former Mayor of Blackburn with Darwen Council Salas Kiani, who lives in Chester Street, Audley, and represents the area, called for work to be suspended while a full consultation process is carried out.

But Coun Whalley said claims that there had been no consultation were "a pack of lies."

He said the council was not obliged to consult with residents but they had sent numerous letters and held meetings during the last two and a half years.

Coun Whalley went on: "The problem is every single trader wants something different and we are trying to satisfy as many as possible. We believe we have bent over backwards to satisfy them. You can't do a major alteration on roads without causing some road chaos.

"It will be a massive improvement to what was a run down area, which can only benefit retailers. There's as much new car parking being provided as has been removed."

The work, which began on June 9, is to create a ring road around Blackburn to allow the smooth flow of buses into the town centre by allowing through traffic to skirt the area.

The new scheme involves introducing traffic lights at the junction of Eanam and Higher Barn Street and creating a number of one way streets as well as adding double yellow lines and traffic islands to the road and building the pavement out in places.

Coun Kiani said: "I am not against the scheme but I want these people to be consulted properly, which they claim the council has not done.

"I would like councillors, council officers, residents and local business people to have the chance to come together and discuss this properly."

Local business people claim they are already counting the cost of the ongoing work.

David Donnelly, who has run the Lunch Box off Eanam with his wife Christine for 15 years, said the work was an "absolute nightmare".

He went on: "It's not worth us opening at the moment and we don't know what is happening. No one can park anywhere and you can't move for contractors vehicles. Nobody really knows what is going on."

Salim Valli, of Carpet Kingdom, Culshaw Street, said local businesses were consulted about a number of schemes but claimed the council then introduced an entirely different one. He said: "It's abysmal. It's chaos. Total and utter chaos. My customers are reluctant to come here and it is already affecting business. We voted for one plan but they are going ahead with another."

Mechanic Anwar Mohammed of Dock Street Garage, said: "It is affecting the business because people cannot get here but we still have to pay staff wages.

"If there is no business we will be out of a job and then what will we do?"

Abbas Firfirey, of AF Furniture, Eanam, said: "The problem is that our businesses are stranded but if I pull outside my shop I am going to create a traffic jam. The island in the middle is very dangerous. It is making the road too narrow."

Carolyn Fenwick, who lives with her husband and 13-year-old daughter in Audley Lane, said the work was a seven day a week headache for families.

She said residents received a letter about the scheme the day before work commenced.

"It never stops.

"The traffic, the noise and pollution are bad enough but we're going to have traffic lights at the end of the gardens and no one has asked us what we think."

Graham Sutton, owner of Base Systems, said: "It is a major disruption. People can not get to the shop."

A spokeswoman for Blackburn with Darwen Council said temporary traffic lights would remain in place for the rest of this week, though work will continue in Eanam for another three weeks.