HE has sold carpets in York for more than 20 years - now one shopkeeper fears his business may be under threat, and all because of York's new superbus.

David Grierson, who runs Green Lane Carpets, in Acomb, York, said vans will no longer be able to pull up outside his shop to carry heavy carpets inside because of a new bus clearway which has been installed there in preparation for the ftr service.

The bus lane now drawn up outside his shop prevents any vehicle from parking there - which means heavy carpets now have to be lugged through his doors from some 50 feet away.

David, who said his was the last carpet shop in Acomb, felt this was "totally unacceptable".

"Some of these carpets can weigh a quarter of a ton," he said.

"A quarter of a ton is hard enough to get in (from) as close to the door as possible. Most of the drivers have got bad backs and slipped discs. They've been doing it that long, they've got slight strain injuries.

"They could possibly stop delivering. That could put me out of business if they're not prepared to walk that distance. It makes life a lot more difficult."

The new bus lane means David will also have to carry carpets out of his shop and up the road to deliver them to customers - and he said the footpath was too narrow for the job, which meant walking on the bus lane became a necessity.

"With no stopping at all outside my shop, it's become a huge inconvenience and a threat to my business," he said.

"It's got to be a detriment for people who want to come and stop and shop at my shop. The parking down here is bad enough as it is."

A spokesman for City of York Council said local people had been consulted about the new ftr service, and David's business had not responded.

Mr Grierson said he had not done so because he had understood his business would not be affected - but realised it would be when council workers appeared and started laying out the new lane.

Now he wants the council to shorten the lane so vehicles can park outside his shop again.

A spokesman for the council said the lane had already been shortened from 40 metres to 35 metres after local consultation.

He said the bus stop had to be the size it was to allow for disabled access.

Updated: 09:25 Tuesday, May 02, 2006