FREE car parking permits for Yorkshire Dales residents are to be withdrawn.

From April, residents will be charged £30 a year to park in the national park authority's 11 car parks.

The decision was taken yesterday by the authority's finance and resources committee.

Free passes will still be granted in exceptional circumstances where a resident has no alternative parking.

Committee chairman Ann Brooks said: "It is a decision that was made with regret, but with the financial circumstances being as they are, we have to look at ways of generating income.

"We have been asked by the auditors to re-examine our sources of revenue in the light of the fact our grant settlements are expected to be frozen for the next three years.

"We hope residents will appreciate the reasons for us taking this decision."

Authority chairman Carl Les said: "The days of the national park having the luxury of being able to afford to provide free permits for residents is over. I believe we need to bite the bullet and say 'sorry, but our funding issues are so significant that we have to adopt this policy'.

"This new policy will bring us in line with other local authorities."

Free parking permits were introduced in 1985.

A proposal to withdraw resident permits was put forward in 2002, but it was decided free parking should continue.

Jon Avison, the authority's head of park management, said: "The Government is exhorting us to generate as much income as we can out of our assets and free parking for a selected group only is unfair in today's society."

An annual permit costs £75 for businesses and visitors.