Former mayor urges town council to call urgent public meeting.

CLAIMS that Devon County Council may not install parking meters in town centres across East Devon have left Seaton residents in uproar.

One has described the U-turn as leaving Seaton in a ‘perverse situation’.

The meters have already been installed in the resort - the only town in the district to get them.

Former mayor Sandra Semple told the Midweek Herald today (Sunday): “This is a perverse and discriminatory situation where Seaton is now the only town in East Devon to have new parking charges winter and summer.

“Our situation is exactly the same as that of the other towns which have been put on hold – no traffic survey and massive objections.

“It is noticeable that Councillor Hughes’ own constituency of Sidmouth will escape these charges.”

Mrs Semple added: “Councillor Hughes has said that he will meet with residents of towns not having the meters and says that it may be put to referendum - but, again, makes no mention of the situation in Seaton.

“I fully expect him to attend a public meeting, which I hope the town council will arrange as quickly as possible and I presume that our county councillor, Jim Knight, will fight our corner as he was elected to do.”

Last month Mrs Semple submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to County Hall, asking how many parking meters have been purchased by the authority in the last three years - to check the council’s claim that meters ordered prior to charging were not ordered in advance specifically for new sites.

She asked which towns they were for, whether they were new or replacement meters and how much it has cost the taxpayer for DCC to erect ‘dozens’ of signs on Seaton seafront, paint and repaint hundreds of yards of kerbside lines, drop kerbs and employ a parking warden.

Mrs Semple is urging Seatonians to make their views known to Councillor Hughes,

“He is responsible for this cock-up,” she said.

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