An environmental group in Richmond has called for free parking to be scrapped completely at high streets across the borough to slash congestion and improve air quality.

Richmond Council will hike parking charges from July but faced calls for further changes from one group.

Parking charges for the first permit per household in Richmond will rise by 5per cent while other parking charges covering on-street, off-street and multiple household permits after the first will increase by 10pc from July 1. The council's transport committee approved the changes on February 27.

Residents with low-emission vehicles will be entitled to a 50pc discount off resident permits and on-street parking under the changes. The subsidy was set at 100pc but a council report said the number of cars in the borough qualifying for the discount had rapidly increased.

Charlotte Baker, co-chair of Living Streets, said the local campaign group would like to see the changes "embedded as part of a wider transport strategy that actively seeks to reduce car ownership and short car journeys in the borough" at the meeting.

She said: "We were surprised to see that 30 minutes' free parking has been retained as a privilege for Richmond Card-holders and we note that many high streets in the borough still retain a degree of free parking. Given the revenue situation, surely it's a no-brainer to charge for this parking - with exceptions for Blue Badge holders?"

She added: "In truth, there's no such thing as free parking. Our communities bear the cost through increased pollution, congestion, poorer road safety and poorer public realm and we feel such subsidies should be directed towards activities that align more firmly with the council's climate emergency commitments, particularly at a time when revenue is squeezed. We are therefore asking whether, as part of the parking review, the council considered scrapping free parking where it is still offered in the borough?"

Ms Baker later said the group would like to see Controlled Parking Zones (CPZs) extended across the borough but was "talking here about high streets and the ability for people to drive to high streets and park for free still". She said the issue concerns "congestion and the consequential public health and environmental impacts of encouraging short journeys to our high streets".

Lib Dem councillor Alexander Ehmann, chair of the committee, said the authority would have to instantly place parking controls on roughly one-third of the borough if it removed all free parking.

About removing free parking on high streets, Councillor Ehmann said it's not considered an "appropriate juncture at which to remove a relatively modest, in the overall scheme of things, level of support for some necessary vehicular movements" given the cost-of-living crisis. He added: "To have a targeted intervention that simply targeted high streets, I think many of our traders in the borough would find quite a challenging proposition."

Nick O'Donnell, assistant director of traffic and engineering at the council, said there are "wider discussions looking at the overall council strategic approach to savings and longer-term savings and those conversations are not over".

The report said the committee's proposed budget for the 2023/24 financial year includes an increase of £1.1million to meet inflation costs, with an overall budget of £6m. It said the parking review had taken into account the rise in costs and the need for drivers to contribute an appropriate amount for the impact of car use in the borough.