A former Kirklees councillor says there may be a ‘blind’ spot catching motorists out in the notorious bus gates area of the town centre.

Martin Hemingway, of Lindley, says unwary motorists new to the area might find the various bus gates warning signs obscured by buses and other vehicles.

The gates were introduced in 2015 and have proved unpopular with traders who blame them for a slump in trade.

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Mr Hemingway said he followed a motorcyclist into town recently who may have fallen foul of the bus gates.

He said: “Riding from the top of town towards Market Square he seemed to miss all the signs."

Mr Hemingway shared a series of pictures from the journey.

He said: "The first photograph is the view from the top of town by St Patrick’s.

The view from the top of town near St Patrick's

“This picture shows a sign being partially covered by a single decker bus. When the biker rode in, there were two buses at this place so the sign was fully obscured.

A bus gates sign is partially obstructed by a bus
A bus gates sign is partially obstructed by a bus

“The following picture shows the double decker bus obscuring the last sign before the junction.

A bus obscuring another sign
A bus obscuring another sign

"And in this final photograph showing that sign once the bus had gone.

The bus has now left and the bus gates sign can be seen to the right of the picture
The bus has now left and the bus gates sign can be seen to the right of the picture

"There is a sign beyond the junction though after overtaking the stationary bus it doesn’t take many distractions to miss that also.

“If the council are still fining drivers and motorcyclists for entering the ‘no-go’ area they have a duty to properly inform road users rather than placing road signs where they can’t be seen.”

Kirklees Council agreed to investigate the bus gates scheme in January.