PEOPLE could be charged to park outside their homes in areas of Darlington if the council agrees to take action over parking blackspots.

Darlington Borough Council's cabinet will decide whether to proceed with residents' parking schemes in two areas of the town tomorrow.

A total of 21 residential streets between Bank Top Station and Victoria Embankment have been identified for parking restrictions in one scheme.

The restrictions have been proposed in response to residents' concerns about parking as commuters and shoppers block side streets throughout the day.

The introduction of charges at the Victoria Road car park has driven visitors to the railway station and the Cattle Market to park outside residents' homes nearby.

Angus Wheeler, of Hargreave Terrace, said: "Car parking problems in this area are not caused by the locals and it is unfair to penalise them for the privilege of parking outside their own homes."

Janice Elliot, an employee at the Victoria Road post office, said: "People are saying they can't get across the road because of people looking for parking places."

She expected the situation to worsen when a health centre on Victoria Road opens later this year.

A council spokeswoman said residents would be fully consulted before any residents' parking schemes were implemented.

Suggested charges for residents' parking in Darlington are £25, with a one-off initial charge of £50 for the first year of a scheme. The charges are used to pay for at least three patrols a day to stop unauthorised parking. Because it can take up to 18 months to put a parking scheme into action, it has been recommended proposals for the Victoria Road and Stanhope Road areas be pushed ahead by the cabinet.

Cleveland Avenue, Stanhope Road and eight other streets nearby have been identified for another residents' parking scheme, to be developed at the same time.