IT'S the eve of a new Premiership season. Nationwide League clubs have already kicked off.

But for some people, the soccer fortunes of Blackburn Rovers and Burnley are only secondary to a more pressing question: where will the fans park? New restrictions are likely to be imposed in the streets around Ewood Park at a council meeting this week. There are calls for similar action near Turf Moor.

As football attendances carry on rising, it is a problem that gets more acute as each season passes.

Ewood Park and Turf Moor have changed beyond recognition in the 1990s and are among the most modern and imposing stadiums in the country.

But both grounds were built in the last century before the age of the motor car and they remain set among a maze of terrace houses and on the edge of town centres.

When Ewood Park and Turf Moor were built, most fans simply walked there. Now, vast numbers of fans travel by car. There are no large car parks and no room to build any, so where are the fans meant to park?

The issue is rising to the top of the list of the complaints of the average football fan.

And it's also high on the agenda of householders in areas close to the football grounds. So what can be done?

Blackburn with Darwen Council's highways and transport committee chairman Ashley Whalley, who is a Rovers season ticket holder, has studied the problem for years. He said: "I have a great deal of sympathy for the residents around Ewood Park. Motorists show a lack of consideration by parking in front of driveways and on corners, blocking access for emergency services.

"Some families go in two cars when they could go in one.

"We have a number of ideas in mind, such as seeing what open spaces there are in the area within 15 minutes of the ground for possible parking.

"A park and ride scheme may be an option. A lot of pubs already run coaches to Ewood and that could be expanded upon.

"It would be great to see a railway station near Ewood Park. Sooner or later we are going to have to change our transport habits and use public transport more, although I have to say it annoys me that the railways only put on the normal services on Saturday afternoons and the trains are packed out.

"That hardly encourages people to get on."

Josephine Mickleburgh, of Hinton Street, near Turf Moor, has been at the centre of the residents' campaign and attended a police forum meeting with 70 neighbours to complain about Saturday afternoon problems.

She said: "It's interesting to hear they have residents' permits for drivers in the areas around Ewood Park. "That is something we would definitely like to see around Turf Moor. Burnley get very good attendances but we are the ones who pay the price.

"If we want to go out on a Saturday and come back to a parking space we either have to leave very early and be back by 11am or go out at 1pm and come back at 6pm.

"I have lived here now for 10 years and to my mind the problem has got much worse over the last two or three years.

"Some form of park and ride scheme would perhaps help to reduce the amount of cars.

"I do have sympathy for football fans. My father has been a season ticket holder at Turf Moor for years.

"But something must be done about this problem.

"We believe the police have recommended that the council do a survey to find out how bad the problem is. We'll certainly be hoping that happens and that we residents get a bit of consideration."

Many people may wonder why the clubs didn't build new, out-of-town grounds.

But the experiences at Bolton Wanderers' new Reebok Stadium prove that even that avenue is full of potential pitfalls.

Huge car parks were built next door to the ground - something that could never happen at Ewood Park or Turf Moor.

Bus services are laid on from every part of Bolton and from as far afield as Bury and Wigan on Saturday afternoons and a railway station nearby is planned

But one parking controversy has followed another at the Reebok, proving that a stadium planned with the motor car in mind still can't bring the solution to please all.

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