Shoppers facing 50p charge to park cars

Shoppers will be charged 50p to park for 30 minutes in new pay-and-display bays in Cannock town centre. Bosses gave approval at a meeting last night.

A last-minute bid to create new free spaces was rejected.

Councillors gave the nod to creating 23 short-stay spaces with 50p charges per half hour in Manor Avenue, Stafford Road and Mill Street.

The scheme will start imminently for a six-month trial before being reviewed for its progress. It was passed by a 6-2 majority.

If the new bays are only 75 per cent used, council chiefs would make £27,500 in their first year and £48,500 every year after.

Councillor Janos Toth, deputy leader of Cannock Chase District Council, had suggested a dramatic last-minute amendment to the scheme that all 23 new bays should be free.

He said the committee should follow recommendations of the Mary Portas review of the high street and avoid charges to give town centre traders a much-needed boost.

But Staffordshire County Council transport chief Councillor Patrick Corfield said small fees would provide an incentive for more shoppers to pop into the town for errands who might otherwise be put off by larger fees of £3.60 at municipal long-stay spaces.