Community councillors in West Kilbride have called for more parking in the village before a new 220-home development begins construction.

Concerns have been raised about the lack of parking spots in the centre of the village, particularly around the popular Kirktonhall Glen.

Residents fear that with the new Persimmon development, alongside ambitious plans for a new multi-sports facility in the Glen, the centre of the village will soon be overwhelmed by extra vehicles.

Community councillor Kay Hall believes the new development could bring up to 1,000 extra people to the village, which would leave already-full car parks under strain.

She explained: “Persimmon is going to boost the village population and each home will likely have two cars.

“On top of that if we upgrade the Glen with the new facility then that will be even more traffic to deal with.

“We want to get people out and walking but they have to park somewhere and at the moment there is very little on offer.

“The community is going to have to make some noise with North Ayrshire Council to develop further parking, because we all know when a big event or funeral is on you can’t get parked anywhere.

“There has got to be some sort of review of where parking would be possible, and then it’s about finding the money to create more spaces.”

Ward councillor Todd Ferguson says he will get the ball rolling, but fears the days of residents walking into the village are over.

He said: “When I was a councillor for West Kilbride I did a walk around with council officials to identify potential sites for further parking but unfortunately it didn’t come to anything.

“It is going to be an ongoing problem, and I wish we could turn back the clock to days where people walked everywhere around West Kilbride.

“It is changed times and people want to park right outside where they are going, but where they do that is the challenging part.

“I am happy to engage with residents and North Ayrshire Council officers to see what we can come up with.”