LOCAL people have warned of traffic chaos when highways engineers dig up a stretch of road to find out why it is sinking.

Traffic lights have been installed on the B4197, at Ankerdine Hill, Knightwick, so investigations into the subsidence can be carried out.

Resident Shirley Powell said: "At peak times, lorries and cars will be backed down Ankerdine Hill and also towards Collins Green.

"It's going to be a traffic nightmare in a very dangerous area. But our main concern is the reasons for the subsidence."

Another resident, Janet Martin, said: "There are several other stretches of this road where the ground is falling away, close to the edge.

"Further down, on the steep hill above Sunningdale Estate, there is a section where deep cracks and subsidence have reappeared, despite having been patched up several times in the past.

"We have little confidence that it's safe for heavy vehicles to be using the hill, which is also narrow in places."

Mrs Martin and other residents are now calling for a weight restriction to be imposed on that section of the B4197.

Resident, Nigel Bruen said: "This road is obviously unsuitable for 40-ton lorries."