RESIDENTS in the west of York are petitioning to stop "rat-running" through their street.

Householders in Wilton Rise claim motorists are causing havoc by cutting through to jump queuing traffic along Holgate Road.

Petition organiser Brian Bevan, who has lived in the street since 1979 with his wife, Ann, said the majority of residents wanted the council to block off the street with bollards, between Cleveland Street and St Paul's Terrace.

The signatures were passed on to last week's full council meeting by ward councillor David Evans.

Wilton Rise is one of York's 70 unadopted private highways, and is set to undergo one-off improvements after residents claimed it was "almost impassable".

Mr Bevan said: "It's time something was done about it. Drivers come steaming up here all the time just to cut a few minutes from their journey.

"With the exception of one, every resident I've spoken to has signed the petition.

"There is a lot of strong feeling - the council can't ignore us."

Ward councillor Dave Merrett has called for a public meeting for all residents in the area to discuss the issue.

"Rat-running is one of a number of traffic problems in the area. There are big concerns about the number of cars going to and from St Paul's School and through St Paul's Terrace.

"We need a meeting at that end of the ward to discuss all the problems and try to come up with solutions.

"I think there would be mixed views about closing Wilton Rise to through traffic. But it's quite a legitimate thing to sort out if motorists are jumping the queue."

A spokesman for City of York Council said: "We've received the petition and it will be passed onto the appropriate department looking at these residents' complaints. However, we're not aware of any problems relating to rat-running through Wilton Rise, which is virtually a cul-de-sac."

Updated: 11:54 Wednesday, May 08, 2002