A BAN on match day parking in streets around Ewood Park has been delayed as councillors try to come up with a more "radical" solution to the problem.

Blackburn with Darwen Council has been swamped with petitions and letters of complaint from residents about parking problems when fans descend on the area for a Rovers home match.

Highways chiefs had drawn up a series of proposed parking bans which would have forced fans off residential streets up to a mile away from the stadium.

But those plans have been put on hold as councillors enter urgent negotiations with public transport organisations and others to encourage people to stop travelling to the match by car altogether.

Plans include:

Trying to set up a park and ride scheme where Rovers fans would park well away from the ground and travel the remaining distance by bus or coach.

Asking North Western Trains to lay on more Saturday afternoon services with enough carriages to accommodate the match-goers.

Entering negotiations to use open areas for car parking, such as school grounds, local firms and other open ground in the Ewood area.

Investigating the arrangements set up by local authorities around other football grounds in Britain.

Councillor Maureen Bateson said: "There is no simple solution to these problems. We need to look at radical ideas rather than just pushing the parking problems outwards from Ewood. "The clear message is that we are on the side of residents in the area. I don't want to see these problems carry on and residents be subjected to another nine months of misery.

"We need to re-educate football fans that if they want to go to the match they are going to have to find another means of getting there other than by car."

Conservative councillor Fred Slater said: "I believe we are getting neurotic about cars.

"The car is now a way of life and we are not going to get people off the roads on to public transport that does not exist."

A report will be presented to the next meeting of the highways and transport committee on the progress of negotiations to set up better public transport to Ewood.

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