CHANGES to car parking in Christchurch town centre have edged a step nearer to getting the green light.

Members of Christchurch Borough Council's community committee marginally supported recommendations to add 144 parking spaces to counter those to be lost in the near future.

The Pit Site and Bargate car parks are set to be redeveloped, once signed off by the council.

The community committee discussed recommendations from a working party and the council's scrutiny committee, before backing the series of changes.

Bank Close car park will be reconfigured creating 25 spaces, costing £278,200.

Priory, Bridge Street, Millhams Street, Saxon Square and Wick Lane car parks will be reconfigured creating 25 spaces, costing around £200,000.

The coach bays in Mayor’s Mead car park will be replaced by 23 car bays, with coach spaces being added at the Cliff Top car park in Highcliffe, costing £50,000

The roundabout and coach car parking bays at the Two Rivers Leisure Centre car park will be replaced with 71 car bays, costing £200,000.

The bus terminus will be moved backed to Bridge Street as it was in 2013.

Overall the measures deliver 144 car parking spaces at a cost of £728,200.

The plans to move the bus terminus and send coaches out to Highcliffe caused concerns for some members at the meeting.

Cllr Trish Jamieson said the 10-mile round trip from the town centre to Highcliffe was an issue, with congestion already a problem on that route.

Meanwhile, Cllr Jamieson and Cllr Nick Geary said a factor for moving the bus terminus to the leisure centre in 2013 was due to a large number of complaints from Bridge Street residents and businesses.

The report was discussed by the scrutiny committee earlier in November and they recommended adding a deck to the Bypass car park.

The community committee disagreed with this and supported the recommendations as set out by a margin of four in favour, one against and three abstentions.

Cllr David Flagg, who chaired the town centre car parking working party, said: "Members can see with these surface changes we have more or less come up to the 150 spaces that we will use once the car parks at pit site and Dorset County Council area go, and clearly members can see by the costs that that is the cheapest option for us.

"Clearly it will take some time for the use of those car parks to come forward to us to see whether or not we have got enough."

The car park reconfigurations will now be considered by resources committee on December 6, with a decision on funding taken by full council on December 12.