PARTS of Swindon are being swamped by long grass causing road and health hazards, claim residents.

Wet and warm weather has made grass verges, greens and roundabouts suddenly sprout an abundant and lush growth that has left Swindon Borough Council cutters struggling to keep pace.

Phil Rodgers told the Advertiser: “It's especially bad driving from Toys R Us to Covingham and you can't see oncoming cars at the small A419 roundabout. It could lead to a nasty accident at the roundabout. Could the council then be held accountable for not maintaining the safety of motorists and limiting their visibility?

“I live in Peregrine Close which I understand has flooded on many occasions, yet the kerb side of the road in the street is fully cluttered with weeds and debris.

“I'm concerned that this neglect of the public highways will just lead to flooding as it will all get washed down the gutters and block everything.”

An Eldene resident who didn’t want to be named said the verges in her area had not been cut for eight weeks.

“It is having an effect on my family. They are all asthmatic,” she said.

“I have to shut the windows because of the snowstorm of pollen.”

She said Merlin Way from the A419 to Covingham was an area of real concern: “It’s so high in places that it’s taller than the windows of cars so you can’t actually see.”

As well as airing their anger on community social media groups, residents have also been taking complaints direct to the council on its own Facebook page and Twitter account.

“It's absolutely shocking isn't it. I've never known it so bad,” said Yolanda Irwin.

Leah Willcock posted: “The grass is getting worse every single day. There will be a crash if you don't sort it out!"

A Swindon Borough Council spokesman said: “As residents across the borough will have witnessed, the recent wet spell, coupled with warm temperatures, has resulted in rapid grass growth across the borough.

“Our grounds maintenance team have been working hard to keep pace with the recent growth and are already halfway through their scheduled cutting cycle for the season. But, despite this, there are some areas that are currently overgrown.

“We will be doing all we can to keep areas looking as tidy as possible and there will be follow-up mowing along the major routes into the town. We will concentrate on open spaces and residential areas when resources are available.

“We would ask residents to bear with us during this difficult period. We update our grass cutting schedule weekly and would ask residents to check our web page www.swindon.gov.uk/grass for up-to-date information on when our grounds maintenance team will be visiting their area.”