THE TOWN council hopes to help improve Bridport's parking problems by making more spaces available to motorists.

Bridport Town Council has submitted proposals to planners to extend car parking to 27 spaces at Plottingham, behind South Rivers House, next to the River Brit.

The parking area would be on the hard standing area, and the fields at Plottingham would be left as they are.

Speaking at a meeting of the finance and general purposes committee, town surveyor Daryl Chambers, said: "An application has gone in for Plottingham which is the hard standing that is already a parking area.

"It will push out a little bit to make more use of it. We will have 27 spaces down there."

Plans are also being drawn up by the town council for temporary car parking at Asker Meadows.

Mayor of Bridport, Cllr Sandra Brown, said concerns had been raised by the public anonymously that the authority wants to permanently turn the fields into a hard car park area.

Cllr Brown said: "Somebody anonymously is saying the reason we are putting in this application is because we are quite determined to turn Asker Meadows into a hard standing area permanently.

"I think we need to get it known that this is not what we are trying to do."

Mr Chambers agreed with the mayor and hit our at people anonymously criticising the plans.

He said: "We are working on an application now for Asker Meadows.

"Everybody will be able to have their say and it is an open and public debate.

"The application will be quite detailed of what we want to do. It will be a temporary thing in the summer when we need the show field. It is just the show field so it works as a park and walk where people go over the bridge and into South Street."

He added: "I have been asked many times to look at alternative provision for parking to help the town centre. I think this is a good opportunity.

"I hate people that say things anonymously. It's a stupid thing. They should come in the office and talk to me about it."

Cllr Maggie Ray agreed the council needed to be clear about its plans for Asker Meadows.

She said: "I do think it's quite important that we make clear it is just the show field. "We are not going to cover the whole of Asker Meadows with concrete."

Residents wishing to comment on the Plottingham application have until February 27 to visit dorsetforyou.com