Residents and businesses on a busy main road through Darwen claim a temporary surface put down after gas works is causing properties to shake when lorries drive past.

A large section of Blackburn Road was dug up earlier this year as National Grid carried out maintenance work to pipes running under the road.

It was resurfaced with a temporary substance ahead of expected resurfacing work to be carried out in the new year.

But the business owners said vibrations could now be felt when heavy trucks went past.

However, National Grid said it had carried out its own inspection following complaints and was satisfied the problem was not due to its resurfacing work.

David Scott, of Design Hair and Beauty Salon, believed the road surface was insufficient.

He said: “You can feel the 40-tonne wagons driving past. There are dips in the tarmac and you can see the lorries dip into them as they drive along.”

Shopna Hussain, 37, who runs and lives above Aman’s convenience store in Blackburn Road, saod: “At 5am, when big lorries go past, it causes the wardrobes to shake because of the vibrations. It has been happening since the gas works were started in August. It is disturbing us every morning when everything starts shaking. It is like a tremor.”

Earcroft councillor Trevor Maxfield, who is deputy chairman of Darwen Town Council, said the surface should be repaired by National Grid. He said: “I have had a couple of complaints from residents. The neighbours had been campaigning for a while to get it resurfaced.

“If a utility company has the right to come and dig it up, they should be expected to put it back how it was.”

A spokesman for National Grid said: “We recently received a complaint about vibrations at a property. However, we investigated this and found that the vibrations were nothing to do with our resurfacing work.

“Our vital gas mains replacement work was planned and agreed with the council and has now been completed. As with the mains replacement work, the resurfacing work was discussed and agreed with the council.

“The current weather conditions are not appropriate for permanent resurfacing work so we have carried out temporary resurfacing as an interim measure.”