A MOBILE phone company may seek a compromise with residents over the siting of a telecommunications pole.

Hutchison 3G UK Ltd is considering its options for the 15-metre structure, which it wanted to mount at the north side of the A690 Durham to Sunderland dual carriageway, 160-metres east of the Carrville interchange with the A1(M).

The move follows Durham City Council's refusal of prior approval, which is required to erect such equipment.

Development control committee members voted 11-0 against the application, following protests from residents in Carrville, citing concerns over health, visual intrusion and the potential dangers of the pole being situated on the roadside next to the busy dual carriageway.

Hutchison 3G previously won an appeal to mount a pole at the nearby Shell filling station, but failed to reach a contractual agreement with the site owners.

Following the latest decision, Ellen Carling, of Dene Drive, Carrville, who spoke against the application at the meeting, said: "I'm absolutely delighted. I just hope Hutchison 3G realise we just don't want this here and look elsewhere.

"We're not against mobile phone technology. We just want to live in an area free from environmental hazards.

"This is an established residential area and it has won awards for its attractiveness.

"It may have been on the opposite side of four lanes of dual carriageway, but it would have been a blot on the landscape, visually horrendous.

"There are also deep suspicions about the potential health hazards, which are as yet unproven."

Hutchison 3G chose the location to provide better coverage for its mobile phone users in the Carrville area and along the A690 and A1(M) corridors.

Bret Fleming, who represented Hutchison at the meeting, said the company was now weighing up its next move.

He said: "There are really two options. Plan A would be to lodge an appeal against the council's decision.

"Then there's Plan B, which would be to go into negotiations with the council and the residents to see if we can come to an agreement over a suitable site."

Local people have pinpointed a disused railway embankment on farmland further away from the residential area as more favourable.