A PLEA to boost shopping in Alton's Normandy Street by offering cheap parking fell on deaf ears at East Hampshire District Council last week.

Alton district councillor Stewart Glasgow told members of the cabinet that shopkeepers in the Normandy Street area were struggling to attract trade, particularly since the building of the Sainsbury's supermarket in the town.

"Trade is diminishing there,"he told members of the cabinet who were debating the introduction of new off-street parking places orders including one for the new Rogers Court car park in Draymans Way.

They were considering introducing car parking charges in line with the other four car parks in the town, including 30p for one hour's parking up and to £4 for an all-day ticket.

But Mr Glasgow said it was acknowledged throughout the district that the Normandy Street traders were a special case and they deserved help.

Organisations including the town council had tried to come up with ideas to boost trade, he claimed. At one stage it was hoped that public conveniences would be built there to encourage footfall past the shops, but the proposal had fallen through on financial grounds.

Mr Glasgow claimed the cabinet would be ignoring the wishes of the people it had consulted in Alton if it did not take action to help the shopkeepers.

He urged members to introduce parking at a charge of 5p for the first half hour at Rogers Court and make it a maximum four-hour stay car park. He said the charging could be reviewed after 12 months.

Fellow Alton district councillor Patrick Burridge told councillors: Normandy Street is a declining part of Alton and car parking is a big problem there."

He said he wanted to see large signs put up which advertised car parking for Normandy Street shops.

He said that in the short-term he would like to see free parking there to get motorists used to the idea of parking in Rogers Court.

Portfolio holder for transport and traffic Jacinta Standen said the council had taken account of Alton peoples' views. But she said the district council aimed to discourage the use of cars and introducing free parking would not be in line with that policy.

She added that if one area of the district had free parking because it claimed it was a special case, others would follow suit.