A council has been accused of “raking it in” at the expense of local businesses and residents after hiking charges in a village car park by close to 600%.

Revenue generated by the site in School Lane, Herne, has almost doubled since the daily tariff rocketed from £2.20 to £15 in April.

This is despite a near-35% slump in the number of motorists using the car park, with many of its 45 spaces now left empty throughout the day.

Locals say the drop in users is devastating for village trade, with 1,300 people signing an e-petition calling for the new charges to be slashed.

Among those backing it is Scott Davis, who initially believed the tariffs were an April Fools’ joke when they were brought in by Canterbury City Council (CCC) at the start of the new financial year.

His daughter, Sadie, had not long taken on the nearby Smugglers Inn pub at the time.

“We thought it was a joke but sadly it turned out the council was serious,” said the retired builder.

“The effect on the pub’s lunchtime trade has been huge and undoubtedly down to the increased parking charges.

“When Sadie first took it on she got lunchtimes going well, but as soon as the new charges came into force, there was an immediate and noticeable slump.

“Customers are simply going elsewhere because lots of pubs have their own parking.

“It might have worked out fine for the council, which is raking it in, but it’s been a disaster for local businesses and residents.”

Previously, users of the car park were charged 60p for 30mins, £1.20 for two hours or £2.20 for 24 hours.

But after CCC decided to move all of its sites into a banding system, the fees increased to £1.90 an hour or £15 a day - charged between 9am and 6pm.

It has seen the authority pocket £11,824 from School Lane in the four months from April to July - up from £6,278 during the same period last year.

But at the same time the number of visits has plummeted by 34%, from 6,479 to 4,293.

Herne and Broomfield Parish Council chairman Carol Davis says the new fees are “ridiculous” and causing huge issues and inconvenience for villagers.

“What the city council doesn’t seem to get is that ours is a community car park and can’t be put in the same bracket as ones in Canterbury, other town centres and on the coast,” she said.

“I am really not surprised the number of people using School Lane has dropped so dramatically because people simply cannot afford it.

“It is having a huge effect on village life and causing great difficulties for so many people.

“Even simple things like visiting the community centre, pub, church or post office has become much more expensive.

“It has also resulted in an increase in unauthorised parking in our car park and more parking in our narrow streets.”

Elsewhere in the village, church warden for St Martin’s in Herne, Priscilla Cox, says parishioners are now fretting about the fees and being landed with a ticket.

“There are some very large gatherings for things like weddings and funerals, and the car park is vital,” she said.

“But it is even affecting things like our coffee mornings, with parishioners saying they can’t stay too long because it’s so expensive to park. It’s completely unreasonable and should be reconsidered.”

Now, as the petition has reached more than 1,000 signatures, the city council is obliged to hold a debate on the issue, which is expected to take place in October.

Its cabinet member for transport, Cllr Alex Ricketts, said: "We are aware of the petition relating to car park charges at School Lane.

"As a band three car park, School Lane is one of the cheapest car parks in the district, and the charges here are in line with car parks in the same band elsewhere.

"All parking charges are reviewed annually and as part of that process, this autumn we will consider what impact the change at School Lane has had.

"When the new charges were introduced in April this year, we continued to allow free parking for the morning school run and in the evening for events at the Herne Centre.”

Cllr Ricketts also suggests villagers who use the car park regularly could buy a £600 annual off-street residents' permit, which allows all-day parking for the equivalent of £1.68.