I AM writing on behalf of the people in Darlington who have to pay to park in the front of their house.

The cost of a parking permit has now gone up to £40 a year, an increase of £15. As usual no one asked for it – just like the fiasco of the wheelie bins – but at least with the wheelie bins every household got them, not like onstreet car parking.

We live in a cul-de-sac near the Queen Elizabeth College, close to the town centre, where you cannot even park in the back lanes.

On one side of the road are six semi-detached houses and on our side there are seven street houses, three of which are flats.

The majority have two cars so, obviously, if you are working there is no guarantee when you come home that there will be a space. The hours we are allowed to use our permits are between 8am to 6pm. After that anyone can park.

We are unable to invite family or friends because we cannot guarantee them a space when they come to visit.

Most of the young working people in our street are penalised because they not only have to pay rent then on-street parking but may have to pay to park wherever their employment is.

It would be of some help if the council could fix the potholes that are only visible when cars are not parked on the road.

There is also the question of double standards. Why should we have to pay for a parking permit, while the residents in the vicinity of the college in Haughton Road receive theirs free?

Mavis Rivers Horton, Darlington.