HOPES of utilising the former police station for coach parking in Christchurch have hit a dead end.

Following an extensive review of car parking in the town centre, councillors recently backed plans to remove the spaces for coaches at Mayors Mead.

As a result, coaches are set to have to travel out of shopping hub of Christchurch to use spaces at the car park on the cliff top in Highcliffe.

At a recent meeting of Christchurch Borough Council's resources committee, where the change was agreed, councillors voiced concerns about forcing coaches to travel so far out of town, although officers did say work was being done to see if coaches could use areas of the now unused police station on Barrack Road.

The site is earmarked for housing and contracts have been exchanged between developer Aster Group and the council.

Any development appears some time away and members of resources committee were pleased by the possibility of keeping coach parking in the town centre, if only for the short term.

However after officers carried out tests at the police station, it has been discovered that it is not suitable for coaches.

The council confirmed officers will now proceed with the intention of moving the coach spaces from Mayors Mead to Highcliffe Cliff Top car park.

Lindsay Cass, head of property and engineering at Christchurch and East Dorset Councils, said: “We have explored the possibility of using the former police station car park in Christchurch as a coach park on a temporary basis.

"However, having carried out tests with coaches in the car park, we have found that they cannot safely manoeuvre around it. As a result we no longer intend to explore the option of using the former police station car park for coaches.

“The council still intends to remove the coach bays from Mayors Mead car park in Christchurch in order to provide additional car parking spaces, and to allocate more space for coach parking to Highcliffe Cliff Top car park.”