NEIGHBOURS who faced a disturbed night's sleep when a road outside their homes was resurfaced convinced Cornwall Council to do the work during the day instead – for an extra £20,000.

The scheme in February on Truro's B3284 Kenwyn Road would have meant closures overnight from Monday until Thursday for three weeks.

Cornwall councillor for the area Fiona Ferguson said: "The council proposed to do the work at night. It consulted people on the road, who strongly objected, including doctors, nurses, police officers and firemen, who all said they were going to be affected by sleep deprivation, diminishing their ability to carry out their work during the day. The Kenwyn nursing home, where 180 people live, would also be disturbed.

"The noise abatement officer said that in the circumstances of this case it would be illegal for the council to carry out the work through the night."

A council spokesman said working at night would not be illegal in a residential or any other area. The revised scheme schedule was for work to take place between 9.30am and 3.30pm and in the evening.

The spokesman said the "resources have been increased to mitigate the reduced working shifts and the reduced working area", to ensure the work was done in four weeks.

The scheme, which was due to cost £140,000, is now costing the council £160,000.

Resident and former police officer John Lett, who describes himself as a sleep deprivation expert, said: "Sleep deprivation would have had a significant impact on some of the people who live here and the way they could do their jobs. I wasn't in dispute that the road needed to be resurfaced. It was just making the council see sense that it shouldn't be done in a residential area at night."

In a statement when the work was first announced, Peter Tatlow, the council's regional engineer, said: "Although night-time work is not popular with many residents, experience has shown that by carrying out the noisier works early in the evening, we can minimise the impact."