An £850,000 project to increase the amount of car parking in one of Suffolk’s busiest towns and tourist hotspots is being completed this week.

The creation of 63 new spaces at The Avenue and Station Road car parks in Woodbridge has taken six months and is being finished just in time for the spring and summer season.

The first stage, the creation of an extra 13 parking spaces at The Avenue car park, along with new bike racks, was opened in January, and a further 50 spaces, speed humps and new cycle racks, are opening at the Station Road car park this week.

Kerry Blair, head of operations at East Suffolk Council, said: “Woodbridge is becoming more popular and we had repeated calls from local businesses and Woodbridge Town Council to provide more parking for visitors and shoppers.

“There are still a few finishing touches to complete, but the car park is open and we hope that the changes will provide easier parking for everyone in the town.”

A small section of the car park will be unavailable until the end of the week when builders remove the compound.

The installation of charging points for two electrical cars and the new ticket machine and tariff board will be completed shortly.

Other new features include better lighting and the installation of bat and bird boxes.

While there has been some loss of vegetation, larger trees have been retained and a substantial new planting scheme has been planned to replace anything taken out.

Phasing of the work and the siting of the main compound area, in the Station Road car park, was carefully planned to ensure the maximum amount of parking remained available during the work over the winter.

Car parking has been an increasing problem for the riverside town in recent years as it has attracted growing numbers of visitors to enjoy its wide range of events and attractions, riverside walks, and bustling town centre full of small independent shops.

Town and district councillors have campaigned for extra parking but finding a solution has proved tricky with building land at a premium and little space available in the town to create new car parks.

The council has liaised closely with residents to make the best use of the new area.