TRADERS in Abingdon, Wantage and Faringdon have welcomed cuts in car parking charges to encourage shoppers to stay longer.

And free overnight parking in town centre car parks in the Vale of White Horse district will run for an extra hour, until 9am, when the changes start in April.

The rates charged for parking for one to three hours are being slashed. In Abingdon the fee will be £1, down from £1.80 for three hours. At the Portway car park in Wantage, the fee will be 80p, down from £1.40 and the charge at Southampton Street car park in Faringdon will be 60p.

Season ticket prices for all car parks in the district have been frozen.

The district council's executive member with responsibility for car parks, Richard Farrell, said: "We're always happy to listen to good ideas and these changes are in response to suggestions from business groups and residents.

"The new charging regime will mean that people can shop for longer in Abingdon, Wantage and Faringdon.

"The reduced charges still mean that car parks will pay their own way, rather than having to be subsidised by those residents who do not have the opportunity of using Vale car parks. It's therefore a 'win-win' situation for everyone."

The ruling Liberal Democrat group on the council denied the changes were a sweetener in the run-up to the council elections in May.

Mr Farrell added: "We decided to introduce the new parking charges to address the concerns of local businesses and to improve the performance primarily of local shops."

Abingdon Chamber of Commerce has been waging a long battle with the council for reduced charges, pointing to free parking at the edge-of-town Tesco store and Fairacres retail park, as well as competition from the new Orchard centre in Didcot.

Chamber president Jill Carver said: "At long last we have managed to get our point across to the council. These reduced charges are excellent news and will help boost the vitality of the town centre shops. Customers often complained that they had to rush back to car parks before their cheap first hour expired. This longer term at £1 for up to for three hours will be welcomed by everyone."