STALL holders at an historic market will start trading on Sundays from next month, but regular weekend car booters fear they are being pushed out. Traders on Hitchin Market who currently work on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday will extend their working week

STALL holders at an historic market will start trading on Sundays from next month, but regular weekend car booters fear they are being pushed out.

Traders on Hitchin Market who currently work on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday will extend their working week from May 2. But the news has caused car booters, who use the space on a Sunday morning to wonder what will happen to them.

Town Centre manager Keith Hoskins said: "Hitchin market has been so successful under community ownership - we had 145 stalls, a record number last Friday. Sunday is an increasingly busy day and we have had demand from our regular market traders to try it.

"Hitchin is such a commuter town and the market is missing out on a lot of people who are commuting in the week. Markets have got to think that they need to be open when their customers want them to be."

But Sunday car booter Jean Gaylor said: "The market people are taking over - it's an absolute disgrace. It's been running now for over two years. The organisers were in tears."

While fellow regular Penny Hope said: "It has built up and now the market is trying to take over. We shall stop going on principal, it's not right."

But Mr Hoskins said there is room for both.

"There will still be an opportunity for car booters to come onto the market. The dividing line between casual traders and car booters is a thin one. Quite a lot of them could come on as regular traders." He said.

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