DURHAM City residents have lost their fight to stop the introduction of pay-and-display parking in the road outside their home.

Durham County Council's highways committee has approved the extension of parking controls, which have been in place in most of the city centre for some time, to the Western Hill and Hawthorn Terrace areas.

The move was opposed by people in Albert Street, Western Hill, who feared the plan would make parking and traffic problems in the street worse.

But their call for a variation to the scheme, that would have seen residents' permit parking rather than pay and display, was rejected by councillors.

Parking controls in residential streets around the city centre have been implemented, sometimes in the face of opposition, as part of a series of measures designed to reduce increasing traffic congestion.

The county council has also introduced a £2 toll on the road leading from Market Place to the peninsula, is building three park-and-ride sites on the outskirts of the city and is considering building a northern relief road designed to take through traffic.

Officials hope that the park- and-ride sites, at Carrville, Sniperley and Howlands Farm, will take the long-stay parking of commuters who occupy places in residential streets, particularly those where restrictions have not been introduced, freeing up more spaces for short-term parking by shoppers and visitors.

People in Western Hill, Hawthorn Terrace and The Avenue have previously rejected restrictions, but those streets, highways manager Roger Elphick said, have "become extremely attractive for those drivers seeking to avoid parking charges and, as a consequence, the streets are occupied to their full capacity".

He said: "The demand for uncontrolled space created indiscriminate, unsafe and at times, obstructive parking in some streets close to the city centre.''

Mr Elphick said there had been 16 objections, all but three from Western Hill, but added: "There have been 25 letters of support, which is quite unusual."

Durham City councillor for the area, Grenville Holland, said residents supported the parking zone but felt Western Hill was a special case and should have a permit system rather than pay and display.

He told the committee there were not enough spaces as parking was available only on one side of the street and the council's plan to remove a few spaces to create a passing bay could make the problem worse.

He criticised the council's "one size fits all" approach and said a permit system would be cheaper, easy to administer, safer and more effective than pay-and-display.

Albert Street resident Graeme Carter said a permit system would do away with the need for a passing bay and warned that pay-and-display could force motorists to park at North End and St Leonard's School, possibly creating a hazard for pupils.

But Mr Elphick said residents would be able to use nearby streets for parking once Albert Street was in the control scheme. He felt the proposals would benefit people.

Councillor Dennis Southwell's proposal, that the rest of the scheme be approved, but Western Hill be looked at in more detail, was rejected and the existing scheme approved.

Afterwards Mr Carter said: "They haven't listened to the residents. It is residents that live in the city and it is clearly residents' voices that should be heard. But they seem to be listening to everyone - visitors and tourists - apart from us."

The first two park-and-ride sites are due to open at the end of the year.