Residents living on one of the main routes into Carlisle say they are still hopeful that a local authority will back down over controversial plans to widen the road and remove trees.

A final decision is yet to be made by Cumbria County Council on whether it will go ahead with the £1m scheme, which has been met with fierce criticism from those living on Warwick Road.

A petition signed by thousands of people from Carlisle and beyond was taken to Parliament by the city’s MP John Stevenson, who added his own name to the list of objectors.

They said that the addition of the extra lane - on the westbound side of the road between the Rosehill Industrial Estate and Eastern Way - would lead to increased safety problems.

Campaigners also said that removing the trees that line the streets will have an adverse impact on the area.

A motion tabled by Colin Glover, leader of Carlisle City Council, stating that the authority could not support the county council’s project, was also backed unanimously by all members.

Cumbria County Council says it is still in discussions with Carlisle City Council, with a final decision due to be made “soon”.

A county council spokesman said: “Cumbria County Council is now in discussion with Carlisle City Council.

“A final decision on the scheme is likely to be made soon and could mean progressing with the original proposal, progressing with an amended proposal or withdrawing the scheme entirely.

“We will ensure that residents are kept informed and engaged.”

But residents say they have been left in the dark with regards to developments.

Neil Kilgour, who started the petition, told the News & Star that he nor any other residents have been informed when a decision is likely to be made. “We haven’t heard anything for a while now,” he said.

“We were told that a decision was going to be made soon, but that was a few weeks ago. None of us really know what’s going on. The council said they would be keeping us in the loop, but we’ve not heard anything.”

However Neil said that the feeling among residents is a positive one and that the council will not press ahead with its initial proposal.

He added: “We’re remaining optimistic that this won’t be going ahead. It became quite political, with the petition going to Parliament, and we think that the council have understood why we don’t want it to happen.”