Road humps and road works in Borehamwood are making life harder for paramedics and slowing them down when attending emergencies.

Ambulance staff in the town and other parts of the county have criticised Hertfordshire County Council's highways department for installing too many traffic calming measures on the roads, which add vital minutes to response times to 999 calls.

Jason Redman, a Borehamwood-based paramedic, said: "It's a double-edged sword.

"On one hand, the road humps are good as they slow the traffic down but it does make life harder for us.

"Also, the road works in the high street have given us problems in the past. If we need to attend an emergency in Elstree, we just go round the back now as it's impossible to get through Shenley Road. The cars have nowhere to pull over.

"They do give us trouble at times, but we also have to recognise that they're there for a reason so it's just something we all have to live with. They're a necessary evil.

"No more speed humps would be nice though," he said.

A spokesman for the county council said: "We regularly consult with the emergency services to find out how they are affected by traffic calming measures, and we try to accommodate their needs as far as possible.

"We take their concerns about speed humps very seriously, however, all traffic calming measures are installed to reduce the number of accidents and save lives.

"We only install speed humps if they are the most appropriate form of traffic calming in a particular area.

"We will continue to consult with the emergency services and look in to these issues further."