MOTORISTS made miserable by the thought of having to find a parking space at Bromsgrove railway station need fret no more.

Improvement work on the car park has now been completed generating 65 spaces. Close circuit television has also been installed to cover the car park and station platforms.

Councillor Dennis Norton, leader of Bromsgrove District Council, opened the New Road car park on Monday. June Longmuir, Conservative county councillor for Bromsgrove South, and county councillor Alwyn Davies (Con-Hallow) were also at the opening ceremony.

Cllr Longmuir said: "The completion of this new car park has been a very long time coming. It has taken almost two years and has only been possible through a partnership between a number of different bodies.

"I hope this is now the beginning of what will be a much larger project of redevelopment for this part of Bromsgrove. We are looking to expand the car park further but for now we just hope it will take away the enormous congestion problems in Aston Fields."

The £210,000 revamp includes better access for the disabled and secure storage for cyclists. It is hoped the new facilities will stop congested roads in the surrounding residential areas and encourage pedestrians and cyclists to use the station.

The Strategic Rail Authority awarded the county council £180,000 of the Rail Passenger Partnership funding to support the improvements. The county council's local transport plan funded approximately £130,000.

However, it was a partnership between the county and district council, Central Trains and Network Rail, which saw the project come to life

The district council will manage the car park and motorists can leave their vehicle on site all day for just £1.