A CALL to scrap all Worcestershire's 20,000 concrete lamp-posts and replace them with ones made of more durable materials was made this week by a leading Labour councillor.

Cllr Peter McDonald, who represents Rubery on the county council and Uffdown and Waseley on the Bromsgrove district authority, spoke out following an incident, reported exclusively on our front page last week, about a lamp-post which suddenly crashed onto a car in Callowbrook Road, Rubery.

Cllr McDoanald said this week he has written to Richard Wiggington, the county council's director of environment services, urging him to implement the change without delay.

Cllr McDonald said: "This should be undertaken immediately before someone is killed.

"Worcestershire must be one of only a handful of county councils that has not changed its concrete lampposts to ones made of metal."

He went on to say faults and corrosion to the inner steel reinforcements are difficult to detect in concrete lamps.

Peter Smith had a fortunate escape when the lamp fell onto his wife's car just minutes after he had driven it out of their garage onto Callowbrook Road.

A county council spokesman said Mr Wiggington would pass on Cllr McDdonald's letter to the appropriate officer for consideration.

He added checks are regularly made on the condition of lamp-posts including the one in question in Callowbrook Lane.