Hounslow Council has been analysing feedback to plans for a new parking scheme in Feltham town centre that would see some of the borough’s most disadvantaged residents having to pay £60 for an annual permit.
The proposed controlled parking zone (CPZ) between Highfield Road, Bedfont Lane and the high street was drawn up following a consultation in July 2007.
Businesses would need to pay £500 a year to park a vehicle within the area, while medical and carer permits would cost £30 and residents’ visitors booklets would be £15 each.
Sharon Kennelly, of Orchard Road, Feltham, has lived on the Highfields estate - where a third of the working age population claim income support - for 22 years.
She has enjoyed a free parking permit issued by London and Quadrant Housing Trust and says she can currently find a space “99.9 percent of the time,” but would have to pay to leave her car outside her home if the plans were agreed.
She said: “We already pay our road tax, as well as petrol for the car and insurance, so why should we pay to park where we live? It doesn’t even guarantee you a space.
“With the credit crunch at the moment people just can’t afford this, where are people supposed to get the money from?
“Unemployment has gone sky high and it’s going to get worse before it gets better.
“People are struggling to keep their houses afloat and feed and clothe their kids. £60 a year is not a great deal, but it is to people who haven’t got that money.”
When she asked council officers why the CPZ could not be funded by council tax - which has been frozen for the next two years - she says she was told “these sort of schemes have to maintain themselves.”
Evan Jeposa, who designed the parking plan for Hounslow Council, said it aimed to stop commuters and shop workers from parking within the zone, freeing up space for residents.
The council held an exhibition of the draft design at Feltham library before moving it to the Civic Centre this week. Details of the consultation are available on hounslow.gov.uk.
• What do you think? Let us know in the comments section below.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here