CHEPSTOW businesses are calling on Monmouthshire council to provide extra temporary parking facilities for the upcoming trial of extra trains stopping in the town.

President of the town's Chamber of Commerce, Melanie Phillips, wrote a letter asking whether spaces could be provided by the council directly behind Chepstow train station.

At present the area is overgrown, but has access from the road leading to Mabey Bridge, making it an "ideal temporary car park for at least 20 vehicles," she said.

From May 24, 14 more Cross Country trains a day will stop at the station, after the company announced a trial of the new timetable to gauge customer demand for a more frequent service.

The news came following a five-year campaign by Better Trains 4 Chepstow.

Chairman Jim Jenkins said unless the services are used they may be withdrawn after a year.

Leaflets, new timetables, inclusion in tourist guides and a banner in the town were measures suggested recently to raise awareness of the trial.

But Ms Phillips believes increasing the number of car parking spaces could be crucial to its success.

She said: "We are determined to be successful in getting more local people to use the train service however we currently have very limited car parking at Chepstow Station."

"The station car park is already full by 8am every morning and if we want to make this service sustainable we need to be seen to provide more parking for commuters."

Secretary of Chepstow Chamber of Commerce, Nikki Colley-Priest, said she believed Lydney station, where more trains will also be stopping, was increasing its parking facilities.

A total of 28 trains per day currently stop at Chepstow Station and the new service will offer new opportunities to travel northbound to Gloucester, Cheltenham and Birmingham and southbound to Newport and Cardiff.