A campaign group says it is "delighted" after Carlisle City Council backed a motion not to support the widening of Carlisle's Warwick Road.

Members were unanimous in supporting a proposal put forward by the authority's leader, Colin Glover, at a full council meeting this week.

Mr Glover said that the proposals for the £1m scheme, which have been tabled by Cumbria County Council, were "a step too far".

After the plans were first revealed, a petition was started by Neil Kilgour, which eventually gained more than 5,000 signatures. It was also signed by Carlisle MP John Stevenson, who presented the list of names to Parliament this week.

"Obviously we're delighted that Carlisle City Council has unanimously backed the motion by Colin Glover," Mr Kilgour told The Cumberland News. "That's what we were hoping for.

"Going forward we're hoping that Cumbria County Council will take this into consideration and will scrap the idea."

Mr Kilgour said that residents had not been informed when a decision on the plans was likely to be made. Cumbria County Council has previously said that it will consider going ahead with the plans already outlined, amending the proposals or withdrawing them altogether.

At the meeting, members of Carlisle City Council said they did not support the plans, which would see an extra lane created on the westbound side of the road, between Warwick Road's junctions with the Rosehill Industrial Estate and Eastern Way.

However members said that work will be needed on both junctions at some point in the future to accommodate an expected increase in traffic.

Mr Kilgour added: "We would hope that if something is put forward in future, then the people would be asked about what they want. We would need to come to any agreement."

Joy Graham, who has also been calling on Cumbria County Council to withdraw the current plans, added: "I think the decision by the city council shows that we the residents have been vindicated.

"We're glad that councillor Glover, the city council and our MP have all supported us. We're now focussed on a final push to make sure that the plans don't go ahead."