There are major fears that a crash could trap residents in their homes after Transport for Bucks removed safety barriers at the side of a road with a steep drop to replace them.

Safety barriers on Cheviot Close and Cotswold Way have been removed by Bucks County Council’s transport department to replace them – but residents who live on the steep roads fear they have been left vulnerable if a car crash happens.

Sonni Murray Powell-Thorne, who lives in Cheviot Close, said the barriers have been removed but no signs warning of a dangerous drop have been put in their place while the work is being carried out.

He told the Bucks Free Press: “There is nothing there to warn drivers of the steep drop, all they have put is some cones out. If a car actually went down the bank, it could crash into the building and trap residents in their flats.

“A lot of us are disabled round here and some elderly residents have dementia. It is the school holidays and there are also lots of children round here and also a lot of people cross the road there at night. It is dangerous for everyone.

“They are putting everyone’s safety at risk to replace barriers that did not need replacing in the first place. If they had to replace them, why couldn’t they have taken one away at a time?”

A spokesman for Transport for Bucks said that while they understood the concerns of residents, it was not possible to do the work without removing the barriers all at once.

They said: “The contractors need to be able to strip out all the barriers and the old wooden posts to prepare holes for the safety barrier post sockets to be installed.

“This needs to be done in one day, as a concrete lorry is required for the work, and cannot be carried out one post at a time as it needs to be bulk ordered.

“Before the work began, TfB and our supply chain partner attended the site and agreed that due to the location of the work being in an urban area within a 30mph speed limit, with on street parking and street lighting, it was not necessary to provide a temporary safety barrier.

“Following a complaint, and an additional site visit, our supply chain partner has provided additional pedestrian barriers and placed cones along the verge.

“These cones have flashing lights on that are activated in the evening. As of today (Thursday, July 25), half of the barrier has been installed and the remaining length has been coned

off.”