CLITHEROE car parking fees and payment hours are unfair because they hit daytime visitors to a leisure centre while evening and weekend users pay nothing, Ribble Valley Council has been told.

Current car park arrangements, plus coaches carrying children and traffic going to sports pitches, are creating havoc along the Edisford Road near the River Ribble, the borough's community services committee heard.

Gym member Jane Viljoen told councillors: “We are expected to pay for car parking during the day while others visiting in the evening are not.  Attending a 60-minute class means I have to pay for 90 minutes of parking. It costs me £400 a year,

“It also feels morally wrong to have to pay for parking linked to the leisure centre when there is such a big focus on health issues, well-being and obesity in society.

“Also, because of the cost of parking, people instead park on Edisford Road and walk down to the leisure centre. This then creates problems for other cars and tractors.

“It’s a bizarre situation when Edisford Road is lined with cars and there is a perfectly good car park with hundreds of spaces, standing half-empty because of payment arrangements. In the evenings, the car park is full because it’s free."

More than 700 people had signed a petition over the charging policy., the committee was told.

Cllr Ged Mirfin said: “The council has got to strike a balance between maintaining its own viability, being business-like and aware of costs, and being aware of the needs of customers, so they show loyalty going forward.

“If we push up the costs too much, it will impact on people going to Roefield leisure centre and Ribblesdale Pool. We need to keep people going.

“Regarding short stay parking in Clitheroe town centre, that impacts on visitors numbers. If that rises too much, people will visit the town centre less and spend less. ”

Cllr Jan Alcock said: “I have a lot of sympathy with the lady who spoke. Paying £400 to keep fit is unacceptable. However, free parking is probably not an option. Roefield could perhaps become a long-stay car park? Then people could buy a £90 permit.”

Committee chairman Cllr Richard Newmark said he also had sympathies with Edisford Road residents, who sometimes faced a ‘nightmare’ with parking and traffic issues.

A working group is to look at the borough’s car parking system including fees, operating times and short-stay and long-stay locations.