A series of transport surveys are being carried out in the area to assess the need for improved access between the city and Leeds-Bradford Airport.

Surveys will be carried out in the Horsforth, Aireborough, Otley and Pool areas to measure the number of vehicles using the local road network.

The surveys, which will continue until next Thursday, will also involve roadside interviews with motorists which will collect information such as the details of their journey, whether they car share or if they use facilities such as pay and display car parks.

And this is where the use of police officers to stop traffic will happen as council officers are not legally allowed to stop traffic.

Coun Andrew Carter, executive board member responsible for transport, said: "This survey will provide important information which will allow us to plan for the future development of the city's road and transport networks.

"As the airport expands and there is a greater volume of traffic accessing the north west of Leeds, we need to ensure that the roads are able to handle the extra demand.

"We want to improve the highway network and this information will allow us to do so. There may be minor delays in the short term, but they will be far outweighed by the benefits in the future.

"All information will be taken in the strictest confidence and I hope that people will spare just a few minutes to help ."

Council contractors will be stopping vehicles, including HGVs, with the help of West Yorkshire Police in clearly signposted areas between the hours of 7am and 7pm.

In order to get the most accurate information, it is vital that drivers using roads in the area provide the information which will be used to make decisions in the future.

The survey will either be carried out in a couple of minutes at the side of the road, or a questionnaire, complete with freepost address, will be given to the driver to be filled in and returned at a later date.

The travel information will then be fed into a computer model which will predict how the traffic flows may change as a result of alterations to the surrounding road network.

The surveys are being carried out by Leeds City Council's transport strategy team.

As well as assessing the potential impact of improved access to Leeds- Bradford Airport, the results will also be taken into consideration for other potential highway schemes in the area.