A planning group with over 700 members has called on Waltham Forest council to withdraw a controversial controlled parking zone (CPZ) consultation for the Highams Park area.

The council launched the consultation to implement permit parking in 34 streets on July 13.

It comes just two years after the idea was last rejected by all except two streets and it is the fifth time since 2001, a CPZ has been proposed for the area.

In a sign of solidarity, business owners who are against the scheme, have decorated their shopfronts with campaign posters designed and printed by Beech Hall Road resident, John Avis.

Now, the chairman of the Highams Park Planning Group (HPPG) Gordon Turpin and the group's chair of its transport committee, Roger Torode, have written to the council's deputy leader councillor Clyde Loakes.

In the letter, Mr Turpin explained that the HPPG had been carrying out its own survey into parking problems, which found the most popular option to be a one-hour parking restriction during the day between Monday to Friday.

He argued a CPZ is in "danger of exacerbating problems outside the proposed area without solving the problems within the CPZ area", and said the cost of business permits will "threaten the viability" of the shopping centre.

Mr Turpin, said: "The council has commenced a CPZ consultation without discussion with the HPPG, without any consideration of the work carried out by HPPG in recent months to consult residents on local parking issues, without consideration of the results of previous CPZ consultations in Highams Park, and without including a full range of alternative schemes or their effects.

"The timing of the consultation is poor as many residents will be away on holiday, or soon will be.

"We do not see any sign that the council has learned from those consultations and taken account of the responses in this new consultation - it merely asks the same questions again.

He went on to describe the consultation as "ambiguous, confusing and too restrictive" and said the council has not made it clear to residents that a CPZ will not guarantee people can park near their homes.

The zone itself, which goes as a far as Oak Hill and close to the boundary with Walthamstow was labelled as "strangely lop-sided".

Joe Peterson, 56, lives in Wickham Road, which is the just outside of the proposed permit zone.

"I'm absolutely fuming about this", he said.

"I found out about it after seeing it in a shop window.

"This will have a knock-on effect in roads just outside of the scheme but we have no voice as we have not been consulted.

"Obviously the council are hell-bent on getting this through and have gone about it in a non-democratic way."

Cllr Loakes, said: "Highams Park is one four areas of the borough currently undergoing controlled parking zone consultation.

"These areas have been selected following requests and complaints to the council over the last year regarding non-residential parking causing significant inconvenience to both local residents and businesses.

"CPZs provide benefits to not only residents but local businesses, as they free-up parking space for short-stay customers and visitors.

"The council will only introduce CPZs if there is an overall majority of properties in support of the proposals, or in smaller areas if the results from roads within the proposed zone showed mixed levels of support."

The consultation deadline has been extended to August 14. 

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

Local business owners, employees and residents against the scheme hold posters outside the clock in Highams Park  

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

Map of the CPZ zone in Highams Park