FURIOUS residents say their cars and property are covered in a sticky substance after the highways engineers failed to carry out roadworks properly.

People in Doric Avenue, Rochford, have slammed Essex County Council for what they call “very shoddy workmanship” in resurfacing the road.

Highways bosses deny there are any issues with the works but said workers will examine the scene.

Maureen King, 71, said: “My car and driveway are covered in this sticky substance and it’s awful.

“The road is breaking up and is in an awful state of repair.

“I don’t see how they can leave it like this.

“We want to know what we are paying our taxes for as it clearly isn’t for decent roadworks and for maintenance.

“We cannot put up with this and it’s disgusting that it’s been left like this.

“Now we’ve got to get the mess off our cars and driveways.”

Paul Burrows, 44, said: “It’s all anyone is talking about and everyone is so angry about it.

“I’ve contacted the council a few occasions but don’t seem to have much luck.

“It looks such a mess and they must have just got halfway through and decided to stop the works. I do think that serious questions need to be asked about what is going on in our road.”

An Essex Highways spokesperson said: “Our surfacing manager has been to Doric Avenue on Tuesday to check the work. The site does need another sweep, as is standard, to remove some loose material.

“There doesn’t appear to be any other problem with the work done here, but we will continue to check it. As the weather gets colder it does take longer for the material to fully set and the finish improves as traffic helps bed it in.”