Southend Council has been accused of wasting taxpayers’ cash after uprooting perfectly sound grey poles at a pedestrian crossing and replacing them with black ones.

Two workmen spent a day replacing the poles, which support lights at the crossing in Southchurch Road, Southend, in order to “improve the streetscape”.

Council chiefs have refused to say how much the work cost. Families living nearby said it was unnecessary and the talk of the neighbourhood.

Alan Froy, 62, of Southchurch Road, took this picture of the work and said: “Why they were doing it, I don’t know? The workmen said there was nothing wrong with them.

“What does it matter about the colour? It’s a complete waste of council taxpayers’ money.

“I wonder if the person behind these mindless changes is the same responsible for all the so-called traffic-calming obstacles being installed in Bournemouth Park Road and elsewhere.

“They are dangerous, costly and because they make vehicles waste fuel by having to decelerate and accelerate, increase carbon dioxide emissions and global warming.”

Mehmet Mazhar, the council’s management support officer, defended the work but was unable to say how much it had cost.

He said: “We aim to improve the whole of our streetscapes across the borough.

“When poles need to be replaced, or when new crossings are being installed, we will gradually replace grey poles with black ones. This will be done uniformly throughout the borough, apart from specialist areas such as Southend High Street.

“Black poles stand out better so they can be seen more easily by pedestrians and motorists.

“As this is an ongoing programme, it would be difficult to give a specific cost for replacing the poles in just this one area.

“We can assure residents that the poles are only being replaced as and when they become worn, damaged, or are part of an improvement or upgrade at an existing highway improvement scheme, or part of a new project.”