UNITED Utilities have come under fire for the ‘poor planning’ involved in A590 works, but abusing the workers has been dubbed ‘not on’.

Christine Johnson said: “Abusing the workmen is not on, they are just obeying orders.”

Neil McDougall said: “The workers on the ground don’t deserve abuse, they’re working for one thing and taking instruction from their management.

“Would the same be said if people had glued themselves to the main road and caused a deliberate obstruction?

Do they work at night and keep traffic movement through business hours.”

Mike Braithwaite said: “How many times has this been done though? I’m not a road planner and I don’t work for the highways and I know it’s a stupid idea to put automated traffic lights on the only road out of Ulverston.

“Every year road workers put these lights up and stop traffic for miles causing a major incident and if people starting on them stops their stupidity and actually makes them plan roadworks more power to them.”

Temporary traffic lights were put in place near Booths roundabout at Oubas Hill in Ulverston this week so United Utilities could connect the new McDonald’s development to the water network.

Chris Barron said: “Ok, it’s tricky to dig and reinstate all in a night. So why not do the work at night, and erect a temp crossing with speed restriction in the daytime?

"It scrambles my brain that an entire peninsula can be held to ransom like this. And it’s not tricky stuff - it’s just simple planning.”