UTTOXETER Town Council is to write to East Staffordshire Borough Council to request more leniency when it comes to handing out parking fines in the town.
A review of car parking charges across the borough is currently being carried out by East Staffordshire Borough Council.
Town councillors have also warned a change in parking charges could lead to increase in on street parking in the town.
Under the recommended proposals, the 60p charge for a one-hour stay at Uttoxeter's main car parks would be replaced by a two-hour minimum charge of 70p.
All other rates would rise by 10 per cent, with Sunday charges introduced and set at the same levels as those for Monday to Saturday. The borough council could net an extra £274,000 a year from the changes.
The Post and Times reported last week that parents had been left fuming after receiving parking fines while dropping their children off for a friend's birthday party at Uttoxeter Leisure Centre.
They wanted to see the 'grace period' extended to offer drivers more time to drop their children off at school and to the leisure centre.
Councillor James Russell said: "We need to ask the council that, as part of their review on car parking charges, whether they would increase the amount of time allowed once people park their cars before they receive a parking ticket.
"The borough council have offered a misrepresentation of the facts in their consultation document. What the council are assuming is that whatever they do it makes no difference to the amount of people which would use the car park.
"As we as councillors know from when we have been out canvassing, one of the biggest problems in the town is on street parking. Changing and increasing charges could see this problem become even worse." Councillor Hugh Montgomery said a pay on exit scheme could be more suitable to the town - something suggested in the town's bid to become a Portas Pilot.
He added: "The proposals go against what we are trying to achieve in becoming a Portas Pilot.
"We need to ask the borough council to look again at what the impact could be if these changes are brought in."
The new fees, which would be introduced from April 1, 2013, would be accompanied by a new sliding scale of discount rates of 30, 35 and 40 per cent for parking permits for three, six and 12 months respectively.
