PAY and Display parking is unpopular with shoppers. They invariably end up paying for more parking time than they need lest they overstay their welcome and collect the inevitable ticket.

It is, I suspect, equally unpopular with shopkeepers; people shopping with one eye on the clock are unlikely to engage in casual browsing, and the purchases that result from it. It is, however, very profitable for the council. It resells the same parking time over and over again as shoppers, having paid for more time than they need, leave before their time has expired and are replaced by others who do the same. Which is why it is unlikely that council car parks will be changed to Pay on Exit; the council would lose money by doing so.

Geoffrey Breakell

Hatfield Road

Bolton