CAMPAIGNERS say lorries thundering along Howes Lane "shake the kitchens" of neighbouring houses and proposed restrictions will help better their quality of life.

Plans are being drawn up Bicester to change the route of the road but residents say they have been told this will not happen until 2019.

Traffic is expected to increase over coming years as more houses are built around Bicester, including at the eco town, and campaigners have called for a 30mph speed limit and 7.5 tonne weight restriction as a stop gap until then.

Resident Jill Price, whose garden backs on to Howes Lane, said: "We just haven’t got a good quality of life, the lorries thunder past all day and all night and you couldn’t have your windows open especially when you would want to in summer.

"The noise is just one thing, there is no way you could sit out in the garden. It's scary the speed you see cars going along there.

"The pollution is another thing, you can’t put your washing outside to dry and my neighbour’s grandchildren won’t play outside either as everyone just thinks one day something is going to come through the fences.

"There is just hardly any let up."

The Derwent Green Residents Group carried out a traffic survey last month which it says found overall traffic has increased by 50 per cent in a year with an average of 300 vehicles over 7.5tonnes every day.

Stephen Rand, who organised the survey said: "We are all too well aware of the impact that the opening of Vendee Drive and the traffic congestion on Oxford Road has had on traffic levels on Howes Lane.

"It is not just about noise and air pollution – there is a real issue of safety. Oxfordshire County Council indicate the road is not intended for HGV traffic, but the numbers are increasing all the time."

Ms Price, a resident in Derwent Road for 32 years added: "You can get two or three lorries coming past and myself and my neighbour will feel the kitchens shake.

"It is just aggravating. We just want a temporary solution whilst we are under the impression that the realignment of Howes Lane will not happen until 2019."

Campaigners say they have been told by Cherwell District Council the work will not be able to start for several years but when contacted by the Bicester Advertiser, no-one from the Oxfordshire County Council highways department, responsible for the road, was able to confirm the start date.

But local representatives have said they back the calls for a short-term solution.

Oxfordshire County Councillor for Bicester Michael Waine said: “I fully support the residents in their quest for speed restrictions and a weight limit on the current Howes Lane which is already operating above capacity and that's without the promised housing growth.

“The realigned Howes Lane, with a new tunnel under the railway line, is essential before any building commences otherwise life alongside the current Howes Lane will become intolerable.

“It is amounting to what is becoming a by-pass for Bicester and with the building of houses, each development will bring more traffic and it can only get worse.

“The sooner the realigned Howes Lane can be built the better.”