DECISIONS over the allocation of council funds for road improvement schemes have been labelled a "charade" by the leader of South Gloucestershire Council.

Cllr Neil Halsall made the comment as he threatened not to vote on priority schemes because the Falfield junction on the A38 was not on a controversial list.

Other district councillors were also furious that the list of transport improvement programmes - drawn up buy executive member for transport Cllr Pat Hockey - did not include the installation of traffic lights at the junction.

Councillors were due to prioritise the list of ten road schemes at the Severn Vale Area Forum to decide where £50,000 of council money should go.

Although all councillors did eventually take part in the vote, a number of them had threatened not to.

Cllr Halsall said: "This is the first year we have not been allowed to spend money the way we want to spend it - the way the public wants to spend it.

"Now we are not making any decisions at all but are being told what we can choose from." He said residents of Falfield had been waiting years for the traffic lights.

He added: "We are now being told we cannot do the work at all - the site has not had enough accidents.

"But it is not just about accidents that people have been complaining of.

"This list has been made in a subversive way and I am not going to take part in this charade. I am angry about it."

Cllr Peter Tyzack said: "Falfield is the priority to me. It is a pledge we made to residents last year and we need to honour that pledge.

"It hasn't changed - the situation has probably got worse."

"It is not a matter of accidents but a matter of quality of life for the residents we serve."

Cllr Gary Fox, however, said hotspots with a history of accidents, particularly involving children, should be top of the list.

He said: "I am uncomfortable with the number of accidents on my conscience."

Derek Baillie, senior network engineer for the council, told Wednesday night's forum that signalising the A38 junction would cost £150,000 at least.

He added: "The scheme does not meet policy criteria."

He said the number of accidents at the junction would not be reduced by traffic lights.

Councillors will now write to Cllr Hockey in the "strongest terms" to recommend that the Falfield junction is considered a priority. They will request that the traffic lights be paid for out of the £650,000 allocated to Cllr Hockey to spend on road improvement schemes across South Gloucestershire.

Chairman of Falfield Parish Council, Cllr Mike Pirie, told the Gazette he was pleased by councillors' support for his parishioners.

He added: "The junction is used by a huge surrounding area but we have no industry to finance the improvements - we only have the council.

"We thought we had its support and were promised the lights last year. It seemed odd that the scheme was suddenly taken off the list this year."