LONG-suffering residents fighting a plan to build homes off their narrow cul-de-sac will have to wait another month to find out whether they have been successful.

Councillors deferred a decision on an application to build 16 detached homes off Milton Street, Briercliffe, Burnley, last night after agreeing they did not have sufficient details about how the development would affect traffic in the area.

The application was dealt with by Pendle Council's Brierfield and Western Parishes area committee because the site falls within Pendle.

Councillors were shown photographs of Milton Street to illustrate how narrow and busy it already is. A residents' spokesman said cars were forced to park illegally on the pavement to allow vehicles to pass and any more houses would increase traffic dangers to local people. Paul Halstead, chairman of Briercliffe Parish Council, said: "We have serious concerns regarding the access to the site. It is a very bad junction between Milton Street and Burnley Road and any additional traffic will make matters worse. That junction is not capable of coping with any extra traffic."

Geoff Hook, the developer's agent, demanded to know why the application had taken five months to come to committee and raised concerns about what he described as inconsistencies in a report by the county's highways officer. He described the planning report to councillors as "deeply flawed." He asked: "Why despite sending nine letters to the planning office have I not received one letter of acknowledgement or reply?"

He said any move to reduce the number of houses on the site would be a gross under-utilisation of land within the urban area.

Officers were not able to answer his questions.

The committee, which was recommended to refuse planning permission, agreed to defer its decision until a full traffic report was carried out.

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