Soccer club begins search for park-and-ride location

Residents opposed to the building of the £20m stadium on the Hurworth Moor site at Neasham Road, in the town, led an intensive year-long campaign against the development.

But their protests were unsuccessful and construction of the stadium is now at an advanced stage.

Now, the football club's multi-millionaire chairman, George Reynolds, is searching for a site in the town from which to operate a park-and-ride scheme to take fans to the ground on match days.

As part of the planning conditions imposed by Darlington Borough Council in February last year, the ground can only open with a capacity of 10,000 spectators unless a transport plan and highway improvements to Neasham Road and the A66 are completed in advance.

This requires a park-and-ride scheme, which is likely to be sited on industrial land, similar to those run by Sunderland FC taking fans to the Stadium of Light.

While planners said sites in the Lingfield and Faverdale areas are being considered, Mr Reynolds said the choice will be carefully made so as not to upset residents.

"We don't want to cause any aggravation," he said. "I don't want to upset the rest of the town."

He stressed the system would not use Neasham Road at all, but instead use the A66 trunk road.

Council planning officers have quashed rumours that a site in Hurworth is to be used for the scheme. Word had spread around the village that a farmer's field could be used.

However, planning officer Adrian Miller said: "I have no evidence of that - nobody has approached me."

He said any park-and-ride facility would be unlikely to get the go-ahead if it was in the countryside.

Mr Reynolds said he would also eventually like to see his car parking at the stadium site, now set at little more than 1,000, to be increased.

* For the latest developments at the ground, keep an eye on The Northern Echo's Stadium Watch, every Friday