MORE than a dozen Good Samaritans have been in touch with the Andover Advertiser offering to help an 81-year-old Kimpton man in his efforts to visit his seriously ill wife in hospital each day.

The modest volunteers, many of whom asked not to be named, felt compelled to call after reading about the man who was struggling to afford the £44-a-day taxi fare to Winchester and back.

The pensioner, who wished to remain anonymous, had missed only two visits in the three weeks since his wife was admitted and was desperate to continue his daily trips for as long as she remained in hospital.

That will now be possible thanks to the generosity of readers who have allowed a timetable to be drawn up which enabled him to visit hospital each day this week with arrangements in place for much of the next few weeks.

A Middle Wallop pensioner was first off the mark after reading the article over breakfast.

He donated £150 in bus tokens. Lesley from Lesley's Cars called later to offer the services of one of her drivers who had been touched by the story.

The driver undertook the hospital run on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Ten others phoned with offers of a lift, including a Hampshire ambulance technician working in Win-chester, a Kimpton resident doing a course at King Alfred's College, an Age Concern volunteer, a Kimp-ton worker willing to help out at weekends, a retired Andover couple offering their services and two mums, from Great Shoddesden and Weyhill, who have children at school in the city.

They have all been fitted into the timetable or placed on standby.

There was also an offer of travel tokens from another kind reader and a representative of the local pensions service called hoping to be able to help find funding.

Neighbourcare had been offering the man a reduced price lift with another user whenever possible to keep costs down and will continue to do so.

The pensioner's wife is still in the intensive care unit at the Royal Hampshire County Hospital and is expected to remain there for several weeks.