3,000 sign protest petition over parking charges

A PETITION signed by 3,000 people objecting to changes to parking charges in Stockton Heath and Lymm is to be presented to a meeting of Warrington Borough Council on Monday, December 5.
The changes, which are due to come into force on Thursday, December 1, reduce free parking from one hour to 15 minutes on the Forge car park at Stockton Heath and the three car parks at Lymm.
Lib Dem parish councillor Graham Gowland who started the petition said: “ The number of signatures shows that people feel very strongly that the council has got this wrong.
“We are confused about the status of objections to these changes.  The notice displayed in the car parks says that all representations for or against must be in by December 1 and that all representations may be considered in public by the Council.
“This is nonsense because the new charges are due to come into effect on the day representations are due!”
Chairman of Warrington Liberal Democrats Cllr Ian Marks said: “We object for three main reasons.  Firstly the new charges are highly discriminatory, secondly they will divert parking elsewhere and thirdly they will damage businesses.
We think it unfair that there are no charges on other district car parks.  “The south of the town is being used as a cash cow and an increased income of over £200,000 is expected.  The council says it cannot levy charges on these other car parks because there are free car parks nearby.  Yet in Stockton Heath there is free car parking for 90 minutes next to Aldi and Lymm there are the streets!  There will be more off-street parking and increased congestion.
“We welcome the recent relaxation to allow 15 minutes free parking but this is not enough if you have to wait for a prescription, queue to buy a newspaper or pick up from a nursery.  This discriminates against young mums and the elderly in particular.
“In the town’s shopping centres, there are no limits so free parking is clearly considered to be essential for the financial health of the businesses at these locations.
“Quite frankly it is naïve to believe that parking charges can be imposed in Stockton Heath and Lymm without financial consequences to businesses.  In Lymm there is another factor because a new Sainsbury’s is due to open in a few day’s time outside the village centre with plenty of free parking.”