A BARROW street is becoming a 'dangerous' trip hazard because the wrong type of trees has been planted, a local councillor has warned.

The roots from a number of younger trees on Hartington Street are pushing up through the pavements, said Cllr Anne Burns.

She said the trees were put in a number of years ago as part of a regeneration project.

They were supposed to be a type which would not impact on the pavements as they grew, she said.

Cllr Burns, the Labour member for Hindpool said: "They were supposed to have roots which grew straight down and they weren't supposed to be the type that grows across the pavements.

"They are not. They are growing across and pushing the tarmac up and I saw someone fall there the other day.

She added: "When I looked at all of them, the roots are all the same and they must be looking for water as they are pushing the tarmac up and creating quite a dangerous situation. It's getting particularly bad and it's not good for anyone, whether you are disabled or with a pram."

Kieron Tetchner, the county council highways manager for Barrow, has pledged to look into the issue after hearing her concerns.

Mr Tetchner said: "What I will do is take a look at this section of Hartington Street and see what's there."

He said every three years a major survey of the borough's trees was carried out with around 3,000 trees needing checks because of how close they are to the highway, which the council is responsible for.

He said: "Our arboriculturalist makes an assessment of them, checking whether they are dead or dying or whether they are causing damage."

Cllr Kevin Hamilton, the mayor of Barrow, said it was a 'shame' that the trees are damaging the pavements.

"It would be absolutely fantastic if we actually got funding for trees because to get new trees we have to take it out of one budget and put it in another."

"We have the most trees in Cumbria on the highways and I think 244 of them are in a critical condition," said Cllr Hamilton, the Labour member for Risedale.

Cllr Frank Cassidy said given the scale of 'cuts' to the county council, it needed to hope for a 'magic money tree'.

Barrow Borough Council is planning to apply to the Woodland Trust to get more trees for the area, as part of a new commitment to climate change.

Cllr Therese Assouad, the council's tourism spokeswoman, said local community groups needed to be involved in the process.