HOMES alongside the A12 would have to be demolished under any plans to widen the road, an inquiry has heard.

The idea of making the A12 six lanes wide all the way from Chelmsford and Colchester has been put forward by Essex County Council as a potential long-term scheme to tackle congestion on the route.

However, homes on the road, including those at Marks Tey and Rivenhall End and in more rural areas, are only a few metres away from it.

There are also questions over what would happen at parts of the Witham bypass.

Sir David Rowland, the former Department of Transport permanent secretary charged with recommending what would help tackle congestion on the vital trunk road, acknowledged that if it was to be widened in its entirety, some homes would have to be compulsorily purchased and demolished.

"I suggest for the greater benefit of Essex there would have to be some small-scale housing loss," he said.

Residents living in Foxden, Rivenhall End, whose gardens back on to the A12, agreed something had to be done to make the road safer.

Doug Morley said he would be prepared to see his home knocked down if it improved safety.

"I think if it's going to save lives, do a compulsory purchase," he said. "The roads have got to have something done to them."

But another "concerned" resident said he would prefer to see a previous scheme resurrected, to move the road south of Rivenhall and make that six lanes.

"I think a third lane would make sense in terms of the traffic volume, but because of the specifics here I doubt whether they would be able to fit the three lanes without losing the houses, and that's obviously a concern," he said.

Over at Old London Road, Marks Tey, some residents said they could see three lanes on the A12 improving congestion outside their homes, but suggested the central reservation could form part of the expansion so their homes would not be affected as much.

Beverley Leggett said: "I do think three lanes would be better - and it has to be made better."

Another resident said three lanes would mean more cars clogging up the road when there was an accident and would be expensive and pointless, adding: "It would be horrendous for us but I don't think it would solve anything."