A residents parking proposal has been put forward to tackle the current frustration around the issue.

At the Kingswear Annual Parish meeting, Cllr Lucy Payne suggested a proposal created by the residents parking working group to try and provide more reliable parking options for residents.

The proposal which will go out to consultation to the whole village later this year would offer residents the option of buying a parking permit to park in designated residents parking areas.

These permits would cost £30 for the year and the residents’ spaces would be valid from 9am to 6pm seven days a week.

Short term parking places would also be available for visitors to park for two hours with a no return within four hours rule. However, permit holding residents would also be allowed to park in these spaces throughout the day.

All residents, tenants and second home owners would be accommodated within this proposal.

However, Cllr Payne said that commuters would need to find alternative parking arrangements.

This working group has created the proposal in response to the parking situation in the village which Cllr Payne described as “difficult” and “contentious”.

In the summer months, visitors are keen to use the free spaces available which has created single track roads with limited passing places, creating a safety issue within Kingswear, she explained.

Due to the difficulty parking, some residents chose not to move their cars during regatta for fear of returning with no space to park in.

This proposal will be put out to the rest of the village in July or August and the working group will wait to hear feedback from the village before continuing.

For the cost of this proposal, Devon Highways have suggested that it would cost a one off sum of £10,000 to pay for the signs needed. This is something the parish would need to fund themselves.