THE PROTEST over plans to build a park-and-ride extension on a Winchester meadow hotted-up over the weekend after the campaigners crossed security fencing.

About 20 protestors clambered over the 7ft metal barriers on Sunday afternoon to enjoy a symbolic picnic on the now barren former meadow at Bar End.

Following years of legal action against the plans, Hampshire County Council contractors finally moved on to the site by Garnier Road last week to build the new facility.

The work is expected to take six months to complete and, once finished, will give the city an additional 420 park-and-ride spaces on the 6.5-acre site.

However, environmentalists are furious at the plans, which they see as a betrayal of nature by the local authority.

The meadow was handed over to the people of Winchester after the M3 extension was driven through Twyford Down ten years ago.

But less than a decade after the agreement was reached, the new meadow is being concreted over to make way for yet more cars.

Hampshire County Council says the park-and-ride extension is vital to the future prosperity of Winchester as well as central to cutting traffic in the city centre.

Some estimates suggest about 10,000 cars a year could be kept out of the city by the scheme.

The council also says that more than 22 acres of land has been earmarked for a new meadow on the Alresford Road, just outside the city.

But those gathering at the protest camp on Garnier Road say it is just another example of the council bulldozing over the environment to make way for the motor car.

Yesterday about 20 campaigners, mainly students from Peter Symonds College, climbed into the compound to hold a picnic on the land. Some argued with security guards while the police stood by, although there were no arrests as a result of their action.

Last night campaigners said they were going to move their camp away from Garnier Road and on to part of the site, though the move had yet to happen first thing this morning.

Debi, 22, who declined to give her surname, said: "We intend to stay until we are forced off or we stop the building."

They had also hoped to stage a protest on Sunday by holding hands around the site, but only about 40 people turned up.

Oonagh Dalgleish, 17, of Park Road, Winchester, predicted the end of the Glastonbury music festival would see an influx of protesters.

"We had fliers distributed there. Lots of Winchester people would have been here but they had tickets. You don't spend £200 on tickets and not go. I don't see this protest petering out.

"There are too many people prepared to take action," she said.

"The council has to realise that it can't just keep destroying the environment forever, especially not for the sake of the car."