Scores of people are signing up to a petition launched by former Alsager town councillor, Jo Dale, to ban car parking charges in the town.

More than 1,000 residents have now signed up to the "No Car Parking Charges in Alsager" petition.

A report looking at new a council-wide pay and display policy in council car parks with zonal tariffs is due to go before Cheshire East Council's highways and transport committee on Tuesday.

But Jo who lives in Alsager and runs two businesses, says if parking charges are introduced it will have a "devastating" effect on the town.

"It's a huge mistake. After the 18 months of the pandemic we're still trying to get ourselves on our feet. Talk about hitting us when we're down," said Jo.

"What a ludicrous idea. It will kill the high street and has wide reaching implications for everyone, including parents who park when dropping off at school.

"Residential streets near to town would also get clogged up with cars parked on street to avoid the charges, meaning residents would find it difficult to park outside their houses.

"People will leave town and go to places like Tesco and Lidl in Kidsgrove where there is free parking."

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The mum-of-three says she's been stopped in the supermarket by people complaining about the plan.

"It's bonkers. People are united about this and a group is going to next week's meeting to make their feelings known," said Jo.

The "No to Car Parking Charges in Alsager" petition has its own Facebook page where people can sign up and the petition is also being shared across social media.

You can click on the petition here.

Alsager Nub News revealed details of the report due to go before Tuesday's (September 21) meeting in a story earlier in this week.

The report to go before the committee states: "For historic reasons, the borough has operated with inconsistent car parking tariffs and charging mechanisms, with some places still providing free car parking.

"These arrangements are unfair and represent a significant opportunity in relation to the revenue that could be created to support the strategic transport and highway related objectives of the council."

The new pay and display policy, if approved, will see zonal tariffs introduced.

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Central car parks, that is those within 300m or a five minute walk from the town centre, will be in zone one – the highest charging band – and charges will start at 40p for up to 30 minutes or 80p for the first hour.

'Edge of centre or out of centre' car parks will be within the cheaper zone two and charges will be 30p for the first 30 minutes and 60p for up to an hour.

The new parking policy will see drivers in all towns paying the same.

The charges only apply to council owned car parks.

The highest fee – for those parking between six to 10 hours – will be £5.60 in zone one and £3.40 in zone two.