THOUSANDS of shoppers have joined forces to oppose controversial plans to introduce car parking charges in Biddulph.

Leek has pay and display parking, and the Moorlands District Council is looking at bringing in a similar system in Biddulph and Cheadle.

The council wants to introduce a system under which car parks would pay for themselves, with the charges being enforced by patrol officers.

The council claims motorists often drive round the most popular town centre car parks looking for spaces, while car parks nearby are almost empty.

It wants to free up town centre spaces for shoppers and tourists, and encourage office workers and shop staff to use edge of town parking.

The charging bid has provoked anger from shopkeepers, shoppers and councillors alike in Biddulph.

Almost 3,000 names have already been collected for a petition opposing charging organised by Biddulph Chamber of Trade.

More than 2,000 of the names were collected from motorists at the Wharf Road and Craigside car parks in Biddulph over two weekends.

The remainder of the names feature on petitions distributed by the chamber to local shops.

Members of the public who have not signed a petition are being encouraged to do so as soon as possible before the names are sent to the district council.

The petition days at the car parks were organised by Derek Wain from Wains Electrical, whose wife Jose said no-one in the town wanted pay and display charging.

"The vast majority of trade in Biddulph comes from local people, and charging for parking could have a devastating effect on business," she said.

"A lot of people pop into town for 20 minutes or half an hour, and charging will add to the cost of their shopping.

"Many people say they will go to Tesco in Congleton or Asda in Tunstall to shop if they charge for parking."

Another long-standing business opposed to charging is Brammers shoes, owned by David and Hilda Sheldon.

"We need to encourage our community to shop in the town, and charging for parking will deter some people," said Mrs Sheldon.

"A lot of retail spending is being lost to Biddulph, and the economy of the town is too fragile at present to have parking charges imposed on it.

"We need people to browse more, and it's the wrong time for charging in view of the regeneration plans for Biddulph."