AS many as 8,000 Southend residents could soon be advised on how they could get to work more efficiently.

The council wants to handpick people who could ditch their cars and make the most of public transport, bikes and walking.

The idea is part of the authority’s bid for £8.3million green funding from the Government to overhaul Southend’s transport network.

However, some residents believe the voluntary project is a litte too intrusive.

John Wallace, 32, of Ambleside Drive, Southchurch, said: “It’s just another example of the Government and officials trying to run people’s lives.

“I can’t see why we need this. If you want that advice, it should be available already. Pushing it like this is just interference.

“I can sort myself out, thanks very much.”

The initiative – known as individual travel plans – has already been introduced by other councils after the Department for Transport launched them in 2009. Suffolk County Council, Havant Council and Central Bedfordshire Council are among those involved.

Paul Mathieson, Southend council’s special projects manager for transportation, said: “We are looking at identifying 8,000 households in the town whose residents would most benefit from an individual travel plan, which we would draw up for them.

“If they expressed an interest, we would ask detailed questions about how they travel around the borough and work out for them the most sustainable and cost-effective way they could do this.

“This has been done elsewhere in the country and has led to a reduction in car usage of between ten and 15 per cent.”

However, Michael Hoy, spokesman for the South East Essex Green Party, warned the changes should not just be seen as a gimmick.

He said “Anything which helps to reduce the impact on the environment is to be welcomed.

“However, there can be a tendency to bid for Government money just because it is there. I would not like to see that.”