Councillors have spoken of their disappointment that a commencement of work on a long-awaited bypass of traffic blackspot Trewennack has been ruled out for at least another five years.

Members of Helston town council vowed to write a letter expressing their feelings in the "strongest terms" following the news that funding for a bypass around Trewennack, for which campaigners have been fighting for over 20 years, would not be available until after 2011.

Councillor Swift said that while she was "very pleased" to see that work could be in the pipeline, she was concerned about the length of time it would take to get there.

"That village - and everybody really - has been waiting for a long time for something to happen. There have been accidents galore. It's not a figment of our imagination, these accidents and all the chaos it brings about if the road is shut. If this was Truro it would be done quicker," she said.

She added that members of Wendron parish council, which covers the village of Trewennack, were "very upset" about the length of time it would take and dates that were being "bandied about."

The town councillors agreed to send a letter to the highways department of Cornwall county council, outlining in the "strongest terms" the need for the work to be prioritised.