Direct action is being considered by people living on a twisting country lane as a last resort to raise awareness among drivers blindly following sat nav's which show it as a quick route in and out of the Forest.

Everyone in tiny Rosemary Lane in Tidenham has now signed a petition. Letters have been written to Gloucester Highways, politicians, roadside surveys carried out, but the problems persist.

Jill Maher who lives half way down the steep and narrow sided lane says: "Our next meeting is May 20 when we'll decide what direct action to take. One idea is to position one car at the bottom of the lane and one at the top and take vehicles down in a very slow convoy, pointing out the potholes on the way. Another suggestion is to block our entrances which would mean there would be nowhere for people to pass - there are virtually no passing places anywhere on the lane."

Jill and husband, Stephen, say when they moved to the lane about 24 years ago years ago they'd see five or six vehicles a day, that's now risen to 60 or 70, with an massive surge in vans from 0.3 per cent in 2003 to 33 per cent by 2008.

The tidal wave of cars, vans and lorries using the tiny lane coincided with the huge rise in popularity of the sat nav, which shows it as unrestricted - as does Google Earth. More than 80 per cent of drivers using the lane are now using sat navs rather than reading maps or relying on signs.

At times the situation has descended into almost Laurel and Hardyesque absurdity.

• An articulated lorry took out power lines hauling down two poles, leaving the community without telephones or broadband access for eight days. The lorry was trapped for nigh on two days.

• A coach from Bristol taking pensioners out for lunch in the Forest. Trapped in the lane it had to be taken down through fields to the A48 while the pensioners followed on foot.

• A pick-up truck which got wedged had to be winched out by another recovery vehicle.

And where the lorries are coming from beggars belief say the Maher's.

"A removals van from Scotland on its way to Taunton? Others going

to Wookey Hole from Chester, Rugby to Devon, the Midlands to Taunton. We've even had a stretch limo down here."

There is a darker side though.

"There's a danger to life and limb," says Mrs Maher. "We have several residents who are blind or partially blind. One used to walk his dogs up here everyday, but he can't manage it now. They are in constant fear as they walk to the bus stop or to see a neighbour. They lose their footing because the edges of the lane are so uneven and have to try and keep themselves safe as traffic speeds past them."

One light at the end of the tunnel may be a meeting between Gloucestershire Highways and Gloucestershire Police's road safety and traffic management officers.

Mr Maher believes one solution would be for speed restrictions to be imposed, making the route ostensibly 'slower'. He says it might also be a good idea for sat nav users to read road signs instead of relying entirely on sat nav. Alternatively they could follow in the footsteps of Symonds Yat where signs have been put up reading: "Not a sat nav route".

•Rosemary Lane and Kelly's Lane residents will meet at the village hall in the Lane on May 20 to decide the way forward.