A new state-of-the-art fire station in Bradford could hamper fire crews' response times, a union claimed today.

Bradford firefighters will move to a new multi-million-pound home in Leeds Road within a year and fire authority bosses say it will improve response times and bring them closer to high-risk areas of the city.

But the Fire Brigades Union fears the move will slow crews down because fire engines will have to travel through one of the busiest junctions in the city at the end of Leeds Road on every call-out.

The union's secretary for West Yorkshire, Sean Cahill, said: "This has been on the cards for several years. The fire authority has had three options: one was to rebuild on its existing site in Nelson Street, another was to refurbish the existing site and the third was to build a completely new fire station.

"The present site provides us with access to all the main arterial roads into Bradford. We believe the fire station is being moved to the Leeds Road area because of the closure of Pudsey fire station."

West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service closed both Pudsey and Bramley stations and created a new £3 million station in Stanningley in 2003.

Mr Cahill said: "We are now going to have to go on to Leeds Road and through one of the busiest junctions in the city every time we respond to an incident.

"We do have a high number of incidents in the Barkerend Road area, but we also have incidents in the Little Horton area and up along Manchester Road and in Manningham. It may improve response times for some areas but it is also going to have a detrimental effect elsewhere."

But Bradford Council's spokesman on the West Yorkshire Fire Authority, Councillor Tony Niland (Lab, Bowling), says Leeds Road is the ideal location. He said: "We have looked at this and we don't see the problem. We understand that it is an extremely busy road but so are all the main roads in Bradford. We think the public will respect fire engines and give way to them.

"It is a great location within the community which will allow us to save lives. The fire station at the moment is miles away from anybody. "

West Yorkshire Fire Authority is planning to buy the Albion Pub on Maud Street from Enterprise Inns to make way for the new station.

It is also planning to ask Bradford Council for a road closure order for Arlington Street. A detailed planning application for the site should be submitted later this year. Once the move is completed the site in Nelson Street is expected to be sold.