A DOUR side street in a Hampshire town is to undergo a £163,000 revamp to make it more pedestrian friendly.

New Street in Lymington, a link between town centre car parks and the High Street, will be transformed by the end of the year.

But it has been condemned by traders who claims it is likely to increase congestion.

The plan involves widening narrow footways and dropping high kerbs on both sides of New Street.

The level of the road will be raised and its scarred Tarmac surface will be replaced by traditional blocks laid in a herringbone design.

Tactile crossings with timber billiards will also be put in place to make the street scene more attractive.

Neil Welker, vice-president of the Lymington Chamber of Commerce, said: "The Chamber has no objections to making the area more attractive but we do object to the traffic implications for the town.

"Lymington High Street is already congested and we have a huge shortage of car parking spaces.

"The widening of pavement and narrowing of the road will without doubt worsen the congestion and make the main car parks more difficult to reach.

"We are also concerned about pedestrian safety on what is already a very busy thoroughfare."

Town clerk Ray Jones said Lymington Town Council had backed the scheme after some initial safety concerns were put to rest.

"At the moment it's a bit of a bland street. If it looks attractive you are more likely to wander down there," he said.

Hampshire County Council hopes its scheme will encourage more people to visit New Street's St Barbe Museum and Art Gallery.

Councillor Jonathan Glen, executive member for environment, said the key reason for doing the work was to improve facilities for pedestrians.

"At the moment, it's not a particularly inviting area to walk in and walkers are often forced into the road because the footways are so narrow.

"Obviously, this isn't ideal as New Street is open to traffic and will remain so.

"There's a balance to be struck between meeting the needs of pedestrians and those in vehicles, but similar schemes elsewhere in the county, such as The Hundred in Romsey, work very well.

"I'm confident that we'll be saying the same about New Street in a few months.'' About eight weeks of work to replace drains in New Street will start in July ahead of the improvement work.