CIVIC chiefs in Eastleigh are to spend £4,250 to keep cars off grass verges in the town and stop them being reduced to mud.

Signs outlawing parking on verges are to be put up in four streets and dragons' teeth stumps will be installed in a fifth.

Backing the move, the borough council's Eastleigh Local Area Committee also approved a £1,000 feasibility study into installing grassed paving on a verge at Allbrook. Eastleigh mayor Councillor Glynn Davies-Dear told committee colleagues: "It's a good start and I hope there will be a lot more to come. Let's keep working at it until we can protect more of our town."

Council engineer Paul Garrod said similar steps could be taken in other streets after the measures had been monitored for a year.

Now traffic regulation orders will ban verge-parking on the southern side of Leigh Road between Bournemouth Road and the M3, as well as in Falcon Square, Falkland Road and part of Lawn Road.

Dragons' teeth will be put in Cox Row.

Grasscrete - concrete blocks which provide a hard standing area for vehicles but which also allow grass to grow through - that could be installed at Allbrook would form an extension to an existing section on the west side of Pitmore Road.