PAVEMENTS which cost £1 million could be given a £13,500 anti-algae treatment because they are too slippery.

Bolton Council said it was considering the treatment, which will also repel chewing gum, after receiving reports of people slipping on Churchgate. The council resurfaced the historic street in 2006.

The same smooth stone flags were laid across the town centre last year — in Deansgate, Knowsley Street and Oxford Road — at a cost of £467,000.

Officers claim the slippery surface in Churchgate is caused mainly by overhanging trees from the Parish Church grounds and do not envisage a similar problem in the rest of the town.

The rest of the town centre does not have trees and benefits from more sunshine.

The anti-algae treatment would, however, still be applied to every new surface in the town centre.

The council said the treatment would also make it easier to remove chewing gum—an often costly and time-consuming job.

Resurfacing the pavements in Churchgate was briefly considered, but this option would be too expensive.

The issue of slippery surfaces was raised at a recent confidential Environment Policy Development Group council meeting.

Councillors asked officers if anything could be done to solve the problem. Lib Dem councillor David Wilkinson, who first raised the issue, said “It’s been badly thought out and badly planned. They will have to spend the money now, but it could have been spent elsewhere.

“Did nobody consider this problem before these new paving stones were laid?”

The council said consideration was always given to site conditions when selecting paving materials.

A spokesman added: “The paving stone selected for the Churchgate site was fully compliant to UK standards.

“However, given the logistics of the site, we have been made aware of a build-up of algae.

“We are looking into the prospect of increasing the cleaning frequencies and using an antialgae spray as a possible solution.

“This would need to be tested first to see if it is successful and, if so, we would look to treat the areas of Churchgate, Deansgate, Knowsley Street and Oxford Road.”

In 2010, the council paid out more than £400,000 in injury compensation.

The payouts were made up of a string of claims made by members of the public amounting to £360,000, as well as £50,000 compensation awarded to council staff.

The council made 71 payouts to Bolton residents, ranging from £850 to £27,000, for slips, trips and falls on council footpaths and pavements.

One of the payments was for an accident involving a child.

There were a further 15 payments made to council employees, including teachers and school staff, ranging from £1,000 to £13,750.

News of the possible anti-algae treatment received a mixed reaction from traders in Churchgate.

Ibrahim Patel, owner of Churchgate News, said: “I hope it works because a lot of people slip, especially the people who visit the pubs.

“The ice and the risk of slipping does affect our business. People are wary that they might slip here and tend to go elsewhere, to streets where there aren’t cobbles. It is worth a try.”

Wayne Jones, senior member of staff at The Old Man and Scythe, said: “It’s a good idea to give it a go for a trial period.

“If it works, fine. If it doesn’t then they can try something else.

You’ve got to at least try possible solutions.”

John Madden, senior member of staff at The Old Man and Scythe, added: “We aren’t aware of a particular problem with people slipping, but if others say there is a problem, it does no harm trying to make it better.”

Joanne Biggs, supervisor at the Capitol bar, said: “The most important thing is the cost.

“If this treatment is expensive and doesn’t work then it could be seen as a waste of money, whereas if it only costs a small amount, it’s worth trying.”