CONTROVERSIAL new car parking charges that sparked widespread anger across York will be reviewed in six months, a council chief confirmed today.

Angry city traders in areas like Walmgate, Micklegate and Heworth slammed the introduction of parking meters. They say new tariffs discourage casual shoppers and hit trade.

The promised review could offer a glimmer of hope for beleaguered businesses. But a critic of the restrictions said six months could be too late if a small firm went bust beforehand.

Liberal Democrat executive transport member Coun Ann Reid today denied the review had been triggered by recent protests.

Stressing the appraisal was part of the council's plans from the start, she told the Evening Press: "If there are streets where there are concerns, it will be better to look at them all in one go rather than in dribs and drabs."

Coun Reid said the evaluation would focus primarily on how charges have impacted on trade.

She said: "We will be reviewing it in six months, then if people do have problems we can look at the points they raise. There have been a number of major changes and it will be good to see in six months how they are working."

But Coun Reid's Labour rival dismissed the review and said a half-year wait could be too long for some hard-up firms.

Coun Tracey Simpson-Laing said: "I think it's a shame it's going to be in six-months. I work in Micklegate and I've never seen it so quiet on Micklegate and Priory Street."

Calling on officers to monitor ticket sales before the review, she added: "In six months a business could go bust."

The new charges introduced across York mean motorists must now pay £1.40 an hour to park in 60-minute bays, previously free for an hour.

Business owners in East Parsade, Heworth launched a petition against the move, while church leaders said parishioners should not be forced to

'pay to pray."

Updated: 09:21 Saturday, April 10, 2004