Plans for a new cycle route on a busy main road have been deemed dangerous and unnecessary by councillors.

The proposals involve a road scheme between Margate and Birchington along the A28 Canterbury Road designed to make it safer and easier to use for cyclists and pedestrians.

But critics from Thanet District Council warn the "hare-brained" scheme is unsafe.

Funded by the government's Active Travel Fund, plans include new and improved crossing points, a reduction in traffic lanes on the A28 and wider footpaths as well as the new cycle path.

Kent County Council (KCC), which is behind the plan, says a key element of the scheme is to make it safer and more pleasant for people who walk and cycle.

Most of the proposal runs along the A28 Canterbury Road, travelling from Birchington, following the A28 past Westgate-on-Sea to join Westbrook Road, connecting to the Viking Coastal Trail.

KCC says the route would provide better connections to key destinations in and around the towns.

But members of Thanet District Council's joint transportation board heaped criticism on the proposals at a meeting on Tuesday.

Representing Birchington Parish Council, Cllr Nick Blankley said smaller authorities had been overlooked by KCC.

"I think it’s fair to say we recognise the benefits of cycling, both physically and for mental health, and it can improve the environment," he said.

"However we feel that this cycle route is not well thought through and potentially offers a risk to health and the environment.

"We don’t understand what impact these plans will have on traffic flows. More importantly there are plans to build 2,000 homes in Westgate and 1,600 in Birchington.

"It risks putting cyclists and pedestrians at conflict..."

"Up until now the planning for those has been based on the idea of the road being as it is now."

One particular concern for councillors was King Ethelbert School, which sits on Canterbury Road and is where KCC plans to install a separated cycling lane and change the layout of the bus stop.

Cllr Blankley said: "It risks putting cyclists and pedestrians at conflict in certain areas as it doesn’t segregate them on footpaths.

"If children were to use this more to get to school, they'd still have to use the dual carriageway."

Meanwhile, Kent county councillor Rosalind Binks was concerned about traffic congestion in Thanet.

She said: “I travel on the dual carriageway quite a bit. It already takes me 20 minutes to get from Broadstairs to out of Thanet, because at peak times it’s single lane.

"It’s so nice when you come back because it’s not a single lane when it’s not at peak.

"This is the major road into Margate and Broadstairs and to suggest narrowing it with a cycle path, I applaud the attempt to make people cycle more, but I think this is money wasted."

Opposition from Thanet councillors was unanimous, as Cllr Fellows described the plans as a “hare-brained idea” while Cllr Linda Wright, a resident of Canterbury Road, said: “It’s quite well documented that my thoughts are that it's unnecessary, ill-conceived and dangerous.

"There’s not one word in the report about HGVs. At peak times we have HGVs, coaches and bus routes.

"If there’s a cycle lane there, do you crash into the cyclist or the emergency vehicle..?"

"There’s not even mention of the emergency services. Two weeks ago I walked to the postbox down there, a fire engine came along and the cars had to come up onto the pavement.

"If there’s a cycle lane there, do you crash into the cyclist or the emergency vehicle?"

While opposition against the scheme is significant at Thanet District Council, the final decision will ultimately fall to Kent County Council.

In a vote, Thanet councillors recommended the scheme to be scrapped.

Proposals include junction layout revisions to give more priority to people walking and cycling, including at the junctions of the A28 Canterbury Road/Minster Road and by the Hussar Hotel.

There would also be new and improved crossing points, short sections of shared pedestrian and cycle paths, and a reduction in the number of traffic lanes on the A28 Canterbury Road to allow for a new separate cycle track.

This would involve reducing the carriageway to a single lane in each direction for most of the route between Queen Bertha’s Avenue and St James’s Park Road.

The two lanes on the approaches to the A28 Canterbury Road and Minster Road junction will be retained to help reduce congestion.

Proposals are also for raised tables at crossing locations, changes to the bus stop layout and the closure of Epple Road to through traffic to prevent rat-running.

The cycle route will connect to the existing Viking Coastal Trail along the Westbrook Promenade in Margate and along the coast.

The scheme is one of four in Kent submitted by KCC to receive part of the government’s Active Travel fund.

The Department for Transport is offering £6.1 million to encourage walking and cycling schemes.