PROPOSALS to start charging for parking in a Dartmoor beauty spot will cause traffic chaos on summer days, residents have warned.

Dartmoor National Park Authority is suggesting introducing parking charges in its car park in Postbridge, and others at Haytor, Meldon Reservoir and Newbridge.

But residents in the centre of Postbridge, a tourist honeypot which attracts coachloads and car loads of visitors in the height of summer, are calling on the authority to abandon the plan.

Gerald Smeerdon, who runs the post office in the heart of the village and lives next door, said: ‘For me it could be the worst thing ever, because they will start parking outside my place and using that as a car park. We get enough trouble with cars parking here now.’

He said he was also concerned that the charges would deter coaches, which under the proposals would be charged £4 a day, from stopping there at all.

‘I get a lot of foreign coaches here, a lot of German coaches, and they do spend money with us,’ he said. ‘They only stop about a quarter of an hour though and I think it is a bit much for the national park to charge them parking for that.’

Postbridge resident Wendy Watson, who lives on the outskirts of the village, said she did not approve of the plan.

‘People won’t want to be forced to pay for parking so they will park on the side of the road instead. This will cause major problems because on a sunny summer day Postbridge is every bit as busy as Exmouth promenade.

‘It will also encourage people to park further out at either end of the village, on the road and in field gates, which could cause a real nuisance for those of us who live further out of the village.’

Wendy’s sister-in-law Rose Watson, who farms in the centre of the village, said that the parking would cause major problems for herself and her husband Jed. They shared a driveway with the post office, which was close to the picturesque clapper bridge which motorists stopped to photograph.

‘We have got concerns because they are already parking all over our driveway at the moment and we are a working farm,’ said Rose. ‘There’s a tree there and they try and park under the tree and sometimes go in the shop. We are in the process of putting new gates in and there will be signs on those saying “no parking” but they don’t always take any notice. At the moment we always say to people “go and park in the car park”.’

Dartmoor National Park Authority said it needed to introduce car parking fees in the car park by its information centre because voluntary donations from motorists had been unforthcoming.

Andrew Watson, head of recreation access and estates for the authority, said: ‘Our current voluntary donation scheme for car parks shows that donation levels have fallen to as low as 15p per vehicle. This is not sustainable as significant investment is needed to maintain car parks and visitor facilities over the coming years and we are no longer able to rely on voluntary donations alone.

‘The consultation is open to any interested party who would like to give their views on the proposals. We are also writing to groups and organisations who use these car parks, inviting them to have their say about the proposals and how the proposed changes may affect them.’

The authority is proposing charging £1 for up to three hours parking, £2 for over three hours, £4 for coaches and £1 for Blue Badge holders.

Comments are invited, before Friday, August 18, online at www.dartmoor.gov.uk/consultations or by completing a survey form at one of the NPA visitors centres at Princetown, Postbridge or Haytor.

Dartmoor Forest Parish Council will discuss the proposal at its next meeting on July 27.