COUNCILLORS have claimed the west end of Darlington is being neglected when transport changes and improvements are carried out.

Maintenance and repair work at sites across the borough has been going on for some months, with the development of the Pedestrian Heart Project.

Decisions are also in the process of being made by Darlington Borough Council about where £2.5m - extra to the money supplied in their budget - will be spent to improve paths and roads, after residents completed questionnaires to highlight problem areas.

However, at a full council meeting on Thursday night, councillors from Darlington's affluent West End said the area was being neglected in terms of resurfacing and maintenance, a claim denied by council transport officers.

Councillor Charles Johnson, representing the Hummersknott ward, said many residents felt they were being overlooked.

He said: "West End residents expect some of the investment, especially seeing as they are some of the higher council tax areas."

Councillor Bill Stenson, of the Mowden ward, agreed they did not seem a priority area for repairs, and criticised the change of bus times, which left some services arriving only once an hour.

Councillor Nick Wallis, council cabinet member for transport, insisted there was no basis to the councillors' claims. We resurface roads depending on need, and not on the basis of geography. We carry out work as and when necessary," he said.

"We have had many suggestions of where to best use the £2.5m that has been made available, and some of those are from the West End."

Coun Wallis added that changes to the bus services were the responsibility of the relevant bus company, not the council.