THE introduction of parking charges is purely financial and has nothing to do with consideration for the motorist or people living in the areas where these meters have been installed.

My mother lives in a block of flats in Compton Street. She is not well and I visit her daily. I work so the visits are normally early evening and I bring with me my six-month-old baby.

As a result of parking meters being put in Cromwell Road, I now have to pay 60p every time I visit my mother and this only allows me one hour. I am not allowed to return within a certain amount of time, so visits to my mother are confined to the one hour.

This is the way the council treats ratepayers - without any consideration for residents in their greed for money. Cromwell Road never had a street parking problem - it has now.

T Michael,

Pottery Lane, York.

...SINCE the recent new on-street car parking charges were introduced, I no longer shop in the city centre except at Sainsburys.

Rather than pay these excessive taxes on the motorist I now shop at Monks Cross or Clifton Moor.

Once a week I go to Wetherby where there is ample free parking at the new supermarket and also plenty of free parking in various parts of the town. What a refreshing change to the tourist-packed and high price car parking city of York.

Trevor Smith,

Gorse Hill, Dunnington.

Updated: 11:22 Monday, May 24, 2004