A SECOND resident permit parking scheme is set to be unveiled by council bosses.

This month's meeting of Bolton's planning and highways committee could see a three-street zone permanently set up in Westhoughton. It would cover Marsden Street, Edward Street and Wood Street, and follows a two-year experimental period.

If passed, it would be only the second permanent residents' parking scheme in Bolton. Labour bosses introduced a similar project in The Haulgh in May so people could park outside their front doors.

Cllr David Wilkinson said the Westhoughton scheme has so far been a reasonable success, but it needed fine-tuning.

He said the Liberal Democrats, now the largest party on Bolton Council, were keeping an open mind on resident parking schemes.

"They look good on paper, but the realities are fraught with difficulty," he said. "They need the total support of residents, who in the past have been known to change their minds. Without them, it's a dead duck."

The schemes are self-financing, with residents usually paying an annual fee of £30.

New council leader Barbara Ronson said some residents in Horwich would welcome a similar scheme, particularly those living near the Reebok stadium, but no plans had yet been drawn up.

Cllr Wilkinson said the council would not make any money from the Westhoughton scheme.

"It would actually cost us money, what with the painting of lines and the making of the legal order, which is several hundred pounds," he said.

In May, the resident permit parking zone in The Haulgh became official after residents in the Dorset Street area complained about town centre workers and shoppers leaving cars outside their front doors.

But the scheme had its critics, with angry town centre workers forced to use multi-storey car parks and some residents baulking at the £30 fee.