AN author has voiced her support for efforts to help a town preserve its market heritage.

Allene Norris's book, The Market, which focused on the famous covered market in Darlington town centre, was a bestseller in the 1980s.

The book was so successful that it had to be reprinted, and earned Mrs Norris appearances on national television and a civic reception in Darlington.

But times have changed for the town's markets, with today's traders voicing concerns that they may not come through a bleak winter.

The National Market Traders' Federation has serious doubts about the outdoor market's survival chances, while indoor stallholders are calling for the borough council to invest more to save their livelihoods.

Traders say radical changes to traffic systems in the town centre have had a serious impact in recent months. The work, part of the council's £6.5m pedestrian heart scheme, has seen bus stops taken away from West Row, meaning passengers are no longer dropped off directly outside the covered market.

Mrs Norris said she fully supported traders in their pleas for more help from the local authority.

"Darlington has always been known as a market town and a lot of people feel very strongly about this," she said.

"It's absolutely devastating that, in the last 20 years, the number of visitors has declined so much.

"Darlington is a market town and it should stay that way. I would be very upset if the markets were lost."

Traders said there had been no refurbishment of the indoor market since 1979, while outdoor stallholders have pleaded for rent reductions.

The council has stressed it is fully committed to maintaining Darlington's market town heritage. Officials said they had talked to traders at length during the consultation period for the pedestrian heart project.

This had resulted in initiatives such as the farmers' markets being relocated onto West Row - a move which led to a significant increase in trade.