A SORRY trail of abandoned vehicles has been uncovered by a Kirklees councillor.
Labour group leader Clr Mehboob Khan has compiled a photographic dossier of rusting, wrecked vehicles.
And he is urging Kirklees to speed up the removal of vehicles to help tidy up the streets.
"I have a lot of concerns over the number of abandoned vehicles," said Clr Khan.
"Currently, the council will write to the registered keeper and if the owner responds to `claim' the vehicle the council has no further interest in removing it - even if it can be dangerous and an eyesore," he added.
"The council should, at this stage, pass on details of untaxed vehicles to the Driver Vehicle Licensing Authority, for them to take action in order to clear our roads of this menace.
"Some councils, such as Liverpool and Sheffield, work in partnership with the police and DVLA to deal with the scourge of abandoned vehicles," said Clr Khan.
"If the council cannot remove an abandoned vehicle the police or DVLA act.
"The police also check for other details from the registered owners, such as MOT and insurance.
"There is no evidence of such joined-up working practice in Kirklees.
"The problem of abandoned vehicles is likely to worsen with new European Union rules on disposing of vehicles," said Clr Khan.
"The council needs to work with other agencies to tackle this problem."
He welcomed a recent operation to tow away untaxed and abandoned cars in the Dewsbury area - with some of them ending up in a giant crusher - and urged that the project be brought to Huddersfield.
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