But Suffolk County Council plans to replace the trees as part of a £200,000 project which will also see new pavements installed and the road surface restored.

The plan will be outlined to members of Newmarket town council's community services committee when they meet on Monday.

This week, Newmarket county councillors Bill Sadler and Lisa Chambers met town council clerk Isabelle Barrett to outline the plan which was first mooted earlier this year but shelved through lack of cash.

The work, which will take between eight and 10 weeks to complete, is expected to cause disruption both to residents and town centre users as it will entail partial closure of the street.

It will cost between £30,000 and £40,000 to fell the existing maple trees, five of which tree experts have said are already dead. They are believed to have been planted more than a century ago and will be replaced with new stock.

Repairs and resurfacing of the pavement in The Avenue will cost an estimated £80,000 while the bill for resurfacing the road will be around £50,000.

Mrs Barrett said: "The county plans to put in 41 hornbeam trees. These will be planted in special containers which will restrict the growth and spread of the tree roots. In the end they could damage the pavement again but not for at least 100 years."

The project will get under way in January to coincide with the planting season and at a time when there are no race meetings or major bloodstock sales scheduled.