IT has taken five long years for hundreds of commuters to get the parking spaces they so desperately need.

Rail travellers starting their journey at Lostock railway station are finally getting a bigger car park and local residents will hopefully see fewer cars parked outside their homes.

However there is a price to pay in the form of more houses and apartments being built close by. The Lostock Residents Association says it is very disappointed about that, but happy about the increase in parking spaces.

Now all the residents have to do is wait for it to happen. Let us hope it is sooner rather than later. And let us hope there is no further arguing between Railtrack and GMPTE on when work should start.

These commuters have suffered enough.