ALMOST 6,500 people have called on City of York Council to halt its highway robbery.

The Evening Press yesterday handed over petition forms - urging the authority to scrap evening and on-street parking charges and remove all unnecessary yellow lines - to Coun Ann Reid, executive member for planning and transport.

Even as the handover was taking place, further evidence was emerging about the impact of evening charges.

York City Trefoil Guild revealed it was the latest organization to abandon the city centre for its meetings, mainly because of the extra costs facing its 40 members.

Spokeswoman Marjorie Sant said the organisation, for former Girl Guides, would now meet at Christ Church hall, in Stockton Lane, where there was ample free parking and more space, instead of renting out a room at the Friends Meeting House, in Friargate.

A Fulford couple, Jacky and Peter Glanville, contacted the paper to say they now ate out at restaurants outside the city centre because of "unfair" charges, adding: "The net effect will be a "polo-mint" town - relatively prosperous on the outside, with no centre!"

Coun Reid revealed that a parking review was under way, with councillors on course to consider a report by officers on September 28.

The report would look at all suggestions, including a flat-rate evening charge, reviewing the use of the Frequent User pass, examining payment methods and the extent of yellow lines in the city centre, and outline the options available.

She hinted that many yellow lines will stay despite protests, because disabled groups had welcomed the way that blue badge holders could now park in the city centre more easily in the evenings. "I would want to ensure that those improvements continue," she said.

She added that many other councils across the country charged for evening parking, and any changes to York's charges would almost certainly result in lost income which would have to be recovered in some other way.

Figures showed that the number of people parking in the city centre had not decreased since evening charges were introduced and the projected income was on target.

Updated: 10:16 Tuesday, September 07, 2004