RESIDENTS of a Cumbrian village say their lives have been turned upside down because of lorries at all hours of the day.

Householders in Milton have also spoken out against proposals to extend the life of Kirkhouse Quarry, Hallbankgate, Brampton, which produces sand, by an extra 10 years, until 2032.

Resident Norman Parry, 69, said lorries from the quarry and other excavations in the area cumulatively add up to 200 lorries a day going through on the A689 - some he claimed break the speed limit.

He and a number of other residents have started a Community Speedwatch group to monitor the situation.

However one of the quarry’s directors said the low scale of work planned means there will only be “single digit” lorry movements each day to and from the site.

He added they work with communities to ensure adverse impacts are mitigated.

Norman said: “This used to be a nice little backwater, now it’s an absolute nightmare.

“We have been complaining to highways, to the council and the parish, anyone who would listen.

“We don’t want to fall out with anyone, we just want people to know about the impact in our community.”

Another resident, a dad of two, who asked not to be named, said they have tried speaking to a number of local councils about the issue.

He added: “The wagons are flying through the at all hours of the day, how someone has not been killed I don’t know.

“I have two young children and I don’t want them near the road, we are all terrified they will hit someone.”

Speaking about the planning application, he added: “When I found out the quarry was only operating until 2023 I thought it was a case of just waiting it out but then this application came up.

“It will be a nightmare if they got another 10 years.

“We’ve started the Speedwatch and we are trying to do all we can.

“Then there is the environmental impact with all the fumes and the noise of the wagons seem to start at 5am in the morning.”

He said the problem was worst at the rail crossing.

Andy Chant, a director of the Cumbria Waste Group, a county council company which owns the quarry, said: “The scale of the operation that we have got at Kirkhouse is so low scale, that is partly why we are trying to extend it is we are only looking at a handful of lorry movements a day. The fact that we are extending the life of the quarry means there will be less lorry movements.

“We have not had any objection that we are aware of.”

He added that they worked extensively with landowners, residents and farmers, to mitigate adverse impacts.

A spokesman for Cumbria County Council said they were aware of residents' concerns about the road and were working to find a solution to the problem.

  • An earlier version of this article included an image of the road, with a Roy Hetherington wagon in it. This photograph was for illustration purposes only and in no way was meant to imply that anybody employed by Roy Hetherington, a local company, has been caught speeding on that road. We have removed the photograph and are happy to clarify this matter.