The time it takes to repair street lights in parts of the Bradford district is “worrying” and heightens fears over personal safety and anti-social behaviour, a political party has warned.

Newly-released figures show how repair times for street lights differ between different Council wards.

In the Shipley ward, the average lights repair time from the start of 2015 to the end of 2017 was 15 days, while in Tong ward it was more than a week longer at 23 days, a Freedom of Information request by the Bradford Green Party found.

When looking at the figures for 2017 alone, the average across the whole of Bradford district was 12 days, with that figure being ten days in Shipley ward and 14 days in Tong.

The statistics also revealed that one street light on Wakefield Road, Bradford, took 111 days to be repaired after it was reported as being out in June last year.

Matt Edwards, Bradford Green Party’s campaign co-ordinator for the Bradford district, said: “When I have been speaking to people in Tong ward, one of the things that keeps coming up was the time it takes for street lights to be repaired. People are worried about their personal safety when they are outside their homes. Street lights are an important first line of defence against anti-social behaviour and make our roads safer.”

Councillor Hawarun Hussain (Green, Shipley) added: “I am pleased that street lights in Shipley are being repaired faster than many places in our district, but it is still worrying to see the length of time it takes to repair some lights.”

Cllr Alan Wainwright (Lab, Tong) has dismissed the figures for his ward. He said: “I think it’s mischief making by the Green Party.

“When people have got on to me, I have got on to the lighting department at the Council and they usually repair it quite quickly. It takes how long it takes. I am quite happy with how the lighting department work in the Tong ward. If you come and have a look around Tong, most lights are still on.”

Cllr Alex Ross-Shaw, Bradford Council’s portfolio holder for regeneration, planning and transport, said: “We do our best to fix street lights as quickly as we can and they are usually repaired within a couple of weeks.

“However, some repairs require work from the network operator, Northern Powergrid, which can significantly add to the length of time a repair can take. We work closely with them to try keep these timescales to a minimum. Repairs to lighting on busy highways, such as Wakefield Road, can also take longer because we do these in batches to reduce costs for the taxpayer and reduce traffic disruption.”