Emotions ran high as project managers were put through their paces while discussing a new waste transfer station.

A public meeting was held to give residents the chance to share their views on a new waste transfer station to be built in Cricklewood, by Edgware Road.

The comes as part of the £4.5billion Brent Cross Cricklewood regeneration project which will bring a new Thameslink station to the area, along with the expansion of Brent Cross shopping centre, 7,500 new homes, a secondary school and new high street.

But residents were concerned about the air pollution and traffic which could be caused by relocating the current Hendon transfer station to Edgware Road, meaning hundreds of HGVs would be going in and out of the site every day.

There were also concerns from Brent councillors in attendance that their wards, Dollis Hill and Mapesbury, would have to suffer the ill-effects of the station without receiving any benefits from the scheme.

Anna Dolezal, of Brent's Mapesbury ward, urged concerned residents London-wide to sign a petition to oppose the project.

She said: "This project affects London and anything that affects us has to be opposed or ameliorated.

"It is not just about Brent residents but Camden and Barnet and any visitors. It has an impact that Barnet doesn't seem to be looking at.

"All the councillors and prospective candidates in Brent are up in arms about this and it is good to air people views, but tonight I have not heard one positive view which is remarkable."

Ben Withers, project manager of the waste transfer station proposal, said earlier plans to install an incinerator have been scrapped and the new station will be state-of-the-art, meaning the air will not be made worse by the workings of the plant.

But these assurances were not enough for some residents, who said they believe thousands of lorries could be driving down their streets every day with no guarantee that they will follow their mandated routes.

One resident from The Railway Terraces, a conservation area close to the new development, said: "I have lived in The Railway Terraces since 1976 and this is is the worst thing that has ever happened since I have lived here.

"There is a logo saying Barnet Council: protecting the environment for generations to come, yet there are things that I can't understand."

He went on to describe his confusion over the number of vehicles which will travel to and from the site, with plans to build a large block of flats nearby, which he believes will exacerbate the traffic.

Another issue raised was the station's proximity to homes, with one father raising concerns over his two children, who go to Our Lady of Grace School near to the site.

Anne Clarke, chairman of Cricklewood Groves Residents' Association and Labour candidate for Childs Hill ward, said: "Residents are rightly furious. Barnet Council sent Capita to take the hits while the community who live in Cricklewood are being ignored.

"A poll was done of the attendees of the meeting and not one person supported Barnet's plans for the aggregate superhub and building waste transfer site. Barnet's planning committee have already postponed this application once and I urge them to do so again.

"Capita was without answers for residents' concerns, and didn't even have a slide for the aggregate superhub at the meeting."

The "superhub" was also a hot topic, referring to a rail freight station which is also expected to be built.

Ash Hussain, the programme manager for the Brent Cross Thameslink project, primarily working on the rail freight station, was forced to field questions about the number of vehicles expected to move around the site.

While Mr Hussein said the number would be close to 452 vehicle movements a day, which is much better than a previous estimate of 1,500, residents disputed his figures, saying they believed the figure would be in the thousands.

Phil Hardwick, who is managing the traffic side of the development, said the way people travel can change and alter, which will likely be the case once the Thameslink station is operational in 2022.

Karen Mercer, from the regeneration team at Barnet Council, concurred with this, saying one of the reasons the station was brought forward was to aid the transition.

The project is also expected to create up to 27,000 jobs.

Brent councillor Parvaz Ahmed, for Dollis Hill ward, said: "The area is really badly affected by traffic. We are affected and if it is going through it will be really bad."

Cllr Arshad Mahmood, also for the Dollis Hill ward, said as of yet, nothing has been offered to the residents of his ward for the way they will "suffer" at the hands of the regeneration.

He said: "I am really concerned about this as Dollis Hill will be most affected by this development but it is not going to benefit us in any sense.

"Barnet Council will get millions through this development and they should allocation part of that money for the residents of Brent, particularly Dollis Hill and Mapesbury wards."

The decision on the rail freight proposal will go to Barnet Council's planning committee on February 8,