Bradford could become a "petrol desert", an expert has warned.

The latest fuel station to shut in the city is the Manningham Lane Services.

And according to the Petrol Retailers' Association about one in ten Bradford petrol stations closed in 2003 and the figure for this year is forecast to be even higher as supermarkets increase their market share.

The association's director, Ray Holloway, said: "It is entirely natural for motorists to search out the best price possible, but this has its own price, and it is the gradual disappearance of petrol stations.

"This could lead to petrol deserts in cities like Bradford with the population forced to drive miles to refuel."

Mr Holloway said there were two main reasons why petrol forecourts closed: the first was the low profitability on the sale of fuel and the second was the development value of the sites they occupy.

The amount of money that a petrol retailer made from the sale of a litre of unleaded petrol at 80.4p was 1.6p, he said.

But that was not all profit as, from this, the retailer must buy fuel from the oil company, pay staff wages and cover all the other running costs.

Mr Holloway added: "The owner could make far more money through selling the land for redevelopment than was ever possible through the sale of fuel."

Harold Hawkyard, 80, ran a petrol station in Toller Lane for more than 50 years but closed the business two years ago.

He still runs a car repairs garage with his son Chris in Lilycroft Road, Bradford, and rents his forecourt to a hand car wash company.

Mr Hawkyard said: "When I first started out, the profit on petrol was much higher and you could make a decent living.

"We finally decided to close down because of the increased number of violent attacks on ourselves and our staff."

West Yorkshire Fire Service has to be notified of any closure of a petrol station so that it can be decommissioned and made safe.

Roger Marris, its senior petroleum inspector, said its records showed that 26 retail filling stations had shut in the Bradford area over the past two years.

Esso UK Ltd owns the site in Manningham Lane and its spokesman said: "Like every business Esso continuously monitors and reviews the individual performance and profitability of each site against various economic indicators.

"To maintain overall profitability of our chain and to ensure maximum value to our customers by offering the best service in the right locations, the closure of unprofitable sites is inevitable."

The site is being sold by estate agents CB Richard Ellis but no application for planning permission has been received by Bradford Council.

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