THOUSANDS of pounds is being spent on urgent work to repair and improve Nelson's car parks.

Workers and shoppers are struggling to find long-stay parking spaces in town and now civic leaders have pledged to spend £60,000 immed-iately to bring Chapel Street and Rigby Street car parks up to scratch.

Cash for car park improvements will be doubled in Pendle Council's next budget to pay for lighting at Victoria Park car park, Carr Road, and improvements to Goitside car park.

Councillors will also start discussions on whether 365 spaces could be created on the Carr Road fairground site, which would cost an estimated £200,000.

Work has already begun to surface, drain, line, light and improve visibility at Chapel Street car park which has potential capacity for 80 cars.

Coun Sonia Robinson, part of a task force set up to look at car parking, said: "Work has already started behind Pendle Wavelengths for repairs to the car park there.

"We're going to have some new lighting in Victoria Park car park."

Pendle Council will negotiate with Liberata and Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale Primary Care Trust which runs the Yarnspinners Health Centre about whether a car park on the fairground site would be viable.

A park and ride scheme could also be introduced to bus people into the centre of town from Carr Road.

But Coun Tony Greaves hit out at planning rules which meant car parking in town was not included in plans for a new contact centre and shops on the former Grand Cinema site in a bid to cut car journeys.

He said: "We are in this ridiculous situation.

"Discussions are taking place with Liberata about providing car parking down there for all these people.

"There are 500 people going to be employed across the road, a large number of which will come in by car and developers were not allowed to provide car parking on site because of the county council's daft rules.

"The county council believes it can stop people driving to work by not providing car parking in Nelson.

"Now it is being suggested, quite rightly in my view, that car parking should be provided on Carr Road and some form of shuttle service.

"It makes no sense. People will still use cars and in addition there will be the diesel used for the shuttle service"