SPEED humps installed after a five-year campaign have been ripped out after two days - because they were the wrong colour.

Householders in Sutton Road, Heston, first petitioned the council to introduce safety measures on the notorious shortcut in 2004.

They were victorious this year when transport chiefs agreed to spend more than £50,000 building speed cushions along the road and a raised platform at either end.

Work began on Monday this week, but no sooner were the first of six sets of speed cushions down, than they had to uprooted.

One neighbour, who asked not to be named, said he had been told the humps were removed because they were black rather than the standard red of those in nearby roads.

"I find it beyond a joke they couldn't get it right after all this time we've spent waiting," he added.

People living in Sutton Road have long complained of commuters using the street as a shortcut between Upper Sutton Lane and Heston Road.

They say motorists regularly speed down the 30mph road, putting pedestrians' lives at risk. Cars have even been known to end up in people's front gardens after their drivers tried to take the sharp bends too quickly.

Tony Cooper, chairman of Heston Community Development Association, was one of the people behind the original petition.

He said he was mystified by the sudden disappearance of the new speed humps, but hoped the work would make a difference to residents' lives when completed.

"Hopefully this will reduce some of the traffic and encourage drivers to cut their speed, but we will have to see what the long-term effect will be," he said.

Householders in Sutton Road originally campaigned to have the street closed to prevent people using it as a short cut. However, there were fears this would cause congestion on surrounding roads.

Hounslow Council had not commented by the time of publication.