Yellow lines that have faded to nothing could be putting lives at risk once again, according to residents of one Falmouth street.

People living in Trevethan Road are worried that yellow lines laid down nine years ago by Cornwall Council have disappeared and renewed parking along both sides of the road could prevent emergency services from accessing the street.

And one group of residents is worried that nothing will be done about the lines for years, after officials admitted the "harsh economic reality" that the council does not have "nearly enough" money to maintain its road markings.

In April the group wrote a letter to then-council leader John Pollard asking for something to be done about the lines, in which it stated: "We are very concerned that a consequence of the council's financial position seems to be its inability to repaint some double yellow-lines, such as those that were added to the east end of Trevethan Road in 2008.

"They were painted because parking on both sides of the road was creating dangerous obstructions to emergency vehicles, as well as making driving very difficult for residents.

"Now, more than eight years on, the yellow lines are now almost invisible in most places and cars are beginning to park on that side of the road once again."

The group also noted it had been told the lines may be repainted as following surface treatment, which could take up to two years, or as part of rectification work for "lining defects" which could happen in March 2018.

It had also considered attempting to raise money to pay for the works, which the council said would cost £1,600, and had also been told that any attempt to repaint the lines themselves would constitute criminal damage.

A response from the office of Mr Pollard noted that the annual budget for yellow line painting in Cornwall was £60,000, and said: "The council recognises that this sum is not nearly enough to keep all the yellow lines in Cornwall up to scratch," and "the harsh economic reality is that it is the best we can achieve within the limited resources available to us."

Tom Bruch, one of the letter writers, said: "We feel powerless. We've experienced, in all areas of life, the consequences of austerity. Now cuts are coming down to the local level and affecting everyone's lives.

"The reasons for the double yellow lines in the first place was safety and to prevent loss of life, and it's still a problem."

Anna Gillett, Falmouth Town Councillor for Penwerris ward, said there was "no room" in Cornwall Council's budget unless there was an obvious danger, and added: "there's no more danger than anywhere else."

She added: "We're at the bottom of long standing austerity measures, and now we see the social fabric disappearing."

Mr Bruch said: "There's plenty of other communities in Cornwall with the same problem, but we live here and it's our problem."

He added: "The only option for us is to chip in money and ask Cormac to do it. Not every community in Cornwall can do that."