A COUNCIL is being accused of "riding roughshod" over local opinion in an effort to push through an unpopular development.

Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, in partnership with Middlesbrough Borough Council, has appointed a firm of consultants to look into three options for an East Middlesbrough Transport Corridor.

When a favourite is decided upon, the councils could apply for Government funding to implement the £30m work within five years.

But east Middlesbrough residents claim the survey has been shrouded in secrecy, and that not everyone affected has been given their say.

Ward councillors Glyn and Irene Nightingale and Eric Empson have written to Colin Moore, Redcar and Cleveland council's chief executive, demanding to be put in the picture. Among the questions they ask are:

l When will the council decide its preferred options?

l Will ward councillors and residents be allowed to present their case to whoever makes the decision?

l What scale of compensation will be available to residents adversely affected by any changes?

The letter states: "You may infer that ward councillors and residents are far from satisfied by the way the council has handled this matter.

"We need to be assured that the council and the Executive will listen to the results of the consultation, rather than pushing through their own preconceived ideas and riding roughshod over the people they purport to represent."

The three options under discussion are upgrading bus services using existing roads; constructing an all-purpose road between Swan's Corner and Longlands Road, connecting with the A172 Middlesbrough bypass and with a possible junction with the A174; and constructing an all-purpose road from Swan's Corner to Stainton Way, with a route for buses and vehicles with more than one occupant from Stainton Way to Longlands Road.

Option three would include a park and ride facility.

Coun Empson said the latter two options would mean the destruction of woods and farmland. He said residents do not want either. "There is congestion, but only at peak times, and a road costing millions of pounds to alleviate it seems ridiculous," he said.

Councillor Dave Walsh, leader of Redcar and Cleveland council, denied that residents have been left in the dark.

"There have been leaflets, meetings and press releases," he said. "They are only options."