Residents in Bridge Ward in Ipswich have raised questions about the newly-implemented parking scheme as signing and lining works begin.

A residents' parking zone around the Bridge area in Ipswich will include Luther Road, Philip Road, Martin Road, Selwyn Close and Stoke Hall Road, Seymour Road, Austin Street and Great Whip Street, with permits required to park in street bays.

Work to carry out signing and lining in these areas began on February 28 and is expected to run until March 8 - but some residents still have questions about the scheme.

Michael Wilczynski, who lives in Martin Road, said: "I don't think it makes any sense.

"There is no pressure for parking spaces on Martin Road. The only time it gets busy is on Sundays, with worshippers at the Bethel Church on Station Street; a time when the scheme is not in operation.

"But my real worry is the paperwork we saw originally said it was all run at cost, not for profit, but there's an extra charge - almost double - for a second vehicle.

"What extra admin costs can there be for the second vehicle over the first?

"There are plenty of my neighbours who have to park a work vehicle outside their home in addition to their own car."

A spokesperson for Suffolk Highways, which handled the consultation process between November and December 2020, said: "The Ipswich Residents Parking Scheme is run on a self-funding basis with the aim that the costs are met by the residents who benefit from it, rather than the general council taxpayer in Ipswich.

"Permit fees are set to cover the cost of administering the scheme and providing a dedicated level of enforcement, not to make a profit.

"The reason for the extra charge for a second permit is to try to limit demand, in recognition that there are an insufficient number of parking spaces available for every resident to be able to have two vehicles.

"As the scheme is run with the aim of not making a profit or a loss, charging more for a second permit allows the charge for a first permit to be lower than it otherwise would be.

"The scheme makes arrangements for the visitors of residents to be able to park by allowing residents to purchase visitor tickets as well as a one-hour timeclock for short stays."

But "a greater number of objections than support" from residents of Rectory Road saw that street removed from the scheme.