A BID to put up a phone mast which would be nearly double the height of street lights in a Kidderminster road has been thrown out by planners.

The plan for a 12.5 metre mast for mobile giant O2 at Godson Crescent was rejected by members of Wyre Forest District Council's planning (development control) committee.

Members refused the application for the Foley Park site on planning grounds - they were told it would look "alien" and harm the character of the area - and not through health worries.

Little emphasis should be placed on health, officers have previously warned members.

Residents turned out to hear the verdict at Duke House in Kidderminster. A total of 28 letters and a 162-signature petition opposed the mast, which would have been erected next to Binder's Supermarket.

Summer Road resident, David Darby - who last month told the Shuttle/Times & News he would not allow his grandchildren to visit him if the mast was put up - warned members it would be a hazard to motorists.

He said: "Most will come speeding up Goldthorn Road. Most have enough trouble navigating this small and tight island without being confronted by a 12.5 metre mast standing in all its glory right in their eye-line."

Councillor Fran Oborski agreed the mast, for hi-tech 3G phones, was "totally inappropriate" but said she was "amazed" the committee had, at its last meeting, accepted a mast beside homes in Stourport Road, Kidderminster.

"Surely, if ever there was an area where mast sharing by the two mobile phone operators could take place, this must be it," she said.

The phone company said 10 alternative sites had been considered but Godson Crescent would be "the best to use".

The council was being "blackmailed" into accepting phone masts as long as there were no planning objections, said councillor June Salter.

Councils face losing thousands in legal costs if phone companies appeal against a rejected application and win.

Council case officer, Paul Round, said the mast would look out of place next to a 6.5 metre street light and appear "alien". It would be visible from nearby homes as close as 25 metres away and should be refused, he said.