A council has decided to largely ignore the results of a public consultation and has increased parking charges.

The decision by cabinet members of Tonbridge and Malling council will see motorists having to pay for parking for the first time in West Malling, Aylesford and Larkfield.

Charges have also been extended across the borough to 8pm, with drivers also having to pay on Sundays.

In West Malling, parking meters will be introduced in the High Street and Swan Street, permitting drivers to stop for up to four hours. As a concession to businesses, the first hour will be free.

The move was strongly opposed by Cllr Trudy Dean (Lib Dem) who noted that the public response to the six-week consultation that ended in January “was overwhelmingly opposed” to the charges, with 94% of respondents objecting.

She said there were a number of supermarkets within a short drive of West Malling that offered free parking and often had extra facilities such as a pharmacy.

There was widespread concern among traders that parking charges would lead to shoppers avoiding the town altogether, and West Malling would lose its status as the borough’s second busiest retail area, after Tonbridge.

There was also a particular concern for those trading at the successful farmers’ market, who had to be on-site from 7am to 2pm. A four-hour limit would simply not be enough for them.

Cllr Dean was further concerned about the intrusion of ticketing machines into the conservation area.

She reminded cabinet members that nearly every building in the High Street was Grade ll listed.

Nevertheless, the cabinet voted unanimously to adopt the new charges - as they did with every one of the proposals put before them.

At Aylesford, parking charges will be introduced at both the Aylesford Bailey Bridge (East) and Bailey Bridge (West) car parks.

In total 1,343 objected to the charges, with 230 in favour.

Both car parks were said to have a different nature from the usual, in that they are not used by shoppers so much as by residents or employees of the nearby industrial units.

For those all-day users, an annual season ticket will be offered at £200. A concession would also be made for parents who use the car park when dropping off or picking up children from the village primary school.

A permit scheme will be made available through the school, although the exact arrangements have yet to be decided.

Ward member Cllr Colin Williams (Con) welcomed the charges, saying the car parks had been abused in the past, particularly by those setting up caravans there, including “eight on one day”.

On a more welcome note, the Bailey Bridge East car park is to be extended to provide up to 30 extra spaces. This was supported by the public with 783 in favour and 591 against.

However, a proposal to extend the Upper Castle Field car park in Tonbridge was opposed by Green Cllr Anna Cope, who said that it would destroy valued green space close to Slade Primary School and close to accommodation for the elderly, both being groups vulnerable to the effects of increased air pollution.

But Cllr Martin Coffin (Con), who is a member of the cabinet, disagreed, saying the extra places would play a “pivotal role” in helping the commercial success of events at the nearby Tonbridge Castle which was one of the council’s aims.

Tonbridge resident James Woods was among those against the Upper Castle Fields plans.

“Allowing car parking to encroach on such an asset would be a serious error of judgement…”

He said: "I am at a loss to understand the logic behind this decision when, if reporting is correct, an independent study commissioned by the council makes no such recommendation, and in fact identifies that the centre of Tonbridge has sufficient car parking.

"I believe the council's own public consultation on this plan received in the region of 2,000 responses and only around 17 of these were in favour of increasing parking in this area with the remaining objecting to any proposal to reduce green space in favour of tarmac.

"The area of land sits directly next to a medieval castle/ancient monument and contributes greatly to the aesthetic of the area, allowing the castle, which is a great asset to the town, to stand proud in attractive surroundings.

"Allowing car parking to encroach on such an asset would be a serious error of judgement that would have a long lasting detrimental effect on this much loved public space."

One of the most controversial measures is the introduction of charges to the car park at Martin Square in Larkfield.

In the consultation, 2,029 people opposed the charges and only 195 supported the fees.

Council leader Cllr Matt Boughton (Con) observed that the results were not a surprise, noting that “you don’t see turkeys voting for Christmas and people don’t necessarily want to pay more”.

Many of the complaints were from businesses, afraid they would lose custom.

Alex Gregory of Gossip Hairdressing said charges would have a detrimental impact on bringing customers in from outside, who might find it easier to go to Maidstone.

Steven Lewis of Tapers Hairdressing said: “This has always been free and should remain so.”

But cabinet member Cllr Martin Coffin (Con) said: “We are not in the business of putting retailers out of business.”

He said there would be a half-hour free parking session, to allow shoppers to make quick purchases, and charges would actually free up spaces in the car park, because it was currently used by some people who stayed there all day.

Cllr Anita Oakley (Lib Dem) said the cabinet was shooting itself in the foot. She said: “Each and every one of the shops around Martin Square is owned by the council.

“If the shops fail, the council is going to lose income.”

She pointed out that the square contained the village post office, library and a health centre. She said: “There is a risk of damaging this vibrant community.”

Cllr Bill Banks (Lib Dem) said: “Fewer than 10% of people thought charges were a good idea. It’s one thing to have a statutory consultation, but then to ignore it seems rather rich to me.

“We should listen to our residents.”

At the very least, he said, the free parking should be extended to an hour.

Cllr Frani Hoskins (Lib Dem) was equally indignant that the cabinet was prepared to ignore the public’s wishes when it came to extending charges to 8pm and adding Sundays.

Some 2,180 people had opposed Sunday charging with only 83 in favour.

She said: ”We have a duty to listen to people’s objections.”

Cllr Coffin disagreed, saying: “I don’t see why Sunday should be any different from any other day.”

However, Cllr Boughton promised that motorists would be spared charges on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day, chiefly because the borough did not engage staff to enforce any charges on those days.