ROMSEY community leaders are urging residents to contact the Government over banning pavement parking in the town.

Parking on pavements is forbidden in London, but elsewhere across England it is only prohibited for lorries.

As reported, the Department for Transport is consulting on three options: extending the London-style ban nationwide, making it easier for councils to prohibit pavement parking, and giving local authorities the power to fine offenders.

Now, one councillor has revealed residents should write to MP for Romsey and Southampton North, Caroline Nokes, voicing their support for the Government consultation, which could help disabled people and parents pushing prams.

Cllr Mark Cooper, who represents Romsey Town on Hampshire County Council, said: "This is something I hear about a lot from residents, because the amount of pavement parking that goes on in the town is quite significant and needs to be resolved.

"Cars park on footpaths which obstruct pedestrians, parents pushing buggies and people in wheelchairs, which it is a real pain.

"It really irritates residents seeing verges covered in tyre tracks and the pavements are not designed to carry the weight of these vehicles."

He added: "In the last month I have probably received eight complaints about pavement parking, including from the Abbotswood estate, because the roads themselves are insufficiently designed for parking.

"The county council has financial problems at the moment and they are not spending any money on things they can avoid, like highways, which means I cannot get anymore yellow lines put in to help with this issue in my ward.

"Central government could ban pavement parking and if people agree with this they should write to Caroline Nokes to ask her to support the Government's consultation on making pavement parking illegal in the rest of the country."

Cllr Dorothy Baverstock, who represents Romsey Cupernham on Test Valley Borough Council, said: "In my ward we have more than enough people parking on the pavements, because there is a complete lack of parking.

"Everywhere you go on housing estates these days, people are parking on the narrow roads and are on the grass verges, so it is an absolute nightmare.

"It is a really big problem and I really worry about blind people, because if they don't have a guide dog and rely on a white stick they will not be aware of the obstruction until they get there and will have to come off the pavement and go around the car."

Cllr John Parker, who represents the Romsey Tadburn ward, added: "I am in full support of banning parking on pavements, because it is a running issue on some of our estates and makes life difficult for people with mobility problems and parents with prams.

"Enforcing a ban would be very useful and I would support any move by the Government to do that."

Ms Nokes also said she has contributed to the Government's consultation on pavement parking, adding she would "urge constituents to also make their views known".