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PARKING MAD

We’re furious over council plans to charge us £50 for a parking permit outside our own homes… it’s disgusting

FUMING residents have slammed council plans that could see them charged £50 to park outside their own homes.

People living in Nottingham have branded proposals to bring in extra permit parking charges "disgusting" as the city council looks to balance its budget.

Resident Linda McGowan has branded the plans 'disgusting'
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Resident Linda McGowan has branded the plans 'disgusting'Credit: BPM

At a meeting this week, councillors gave a thumbs up to plans to make residents cough up for additional permits.

People will be forced to fork out £35 for a second permit and £50 for a third permit if proposals are rubber-stamped following a formal consultation.

The first permit will be kept free of charge.

Council documents reveal that it costs the authority around £500,000 a year to run the 45,000 free residential and visitor permits in circulation.

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The plans tabled would generate "an estimated income of £412,500 in a full year as a contribution to the costs of administrating these schemes".

But some residents living on the 800 streets across Nottingham that would be impacted by the charge have hit out at the idea.

Local Linda McGowan has three parking permits for her son and other family members to use.

The 71-year-old told the : "I think it’s disgusting because that’s not ok for us.

" I thought they were bringing it in to protect us but they’ve penalised us, how they’re charging us.

"I don't think they should be doing this.”

Meanwhile, resident Janet Clay, shared concerns about the price of the extra charges.

The 54-year-old said: “It’s awful, who can afford these charges? We use all three permits and always have visitors.

"Most families have multiple cars, and on top of that visitors, people have no choice but to pay it.

“Most of the streets down here are permit parking, I think it’s wrong, just a way of making money from us.”

Care home worker Mia Surgay, 24, added: “I have one now and two visitors, we shouldn’t have to pay.

"It’s ridiculous, I think it’s wrong.”

A City Council spokesman told The Sun: “Most councils running schemes like this charge for them.

" We are only just starting to introduce charging but unlike most schemes, we won’t be charging for the first permit, only the second or third.

“These are popular schemes which improve neighbourhoods and benefit local residents with better managed parking on their streets – but there is a cost involved which until now has been subsidised by the council.

"That has meant that all city residents, whether they are part of a scheme or not, have been contributing to the cost.

“With ongoing financial pressures, we are now proposing to introduce a fee for residents who benefit from the schemes, which will contribute towards the cost of printing, distributing and managing the permits.”

It comes after a shop owner told how he will have to pay £10,000 a year in parking charges after the council banned him from using his permit.

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James Edwards said he has been issued with multiple parking fines despite paying for a daily trade permit for his work van.

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He owns a farm shop in Exeter and claims the pay and display machine will cost him thousands each year to park the van he uses for deliveries and collections.

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