Car parking charges have been scrapped across Stockport amid the coronavirus crisis.
Nobody will have to pay to use council-controlled car parks - or on-street parking - for at least the next three months.
It comes after NHS and other key workers appealed for charging to be relaxed in line with other areas, while contractors such as NCP pulled their staff from manning sites because of coronavirus.
Merseyway, the main town centre car park, has nearly 1,200 spaces but last week numbers barely reached the mid-20s due to home working and lockdown restrictions.
Sheila Bailey, cabinet member for sustainable Stockport', has now moved to suspend car parking charges indefinitely - with a review pencilled in for three months down the line.
She said: “It became apparent - particularly as the staff who empty the meters are also affected by coronavirus and their numbers have dropped considerably - that the best thing to do was to leave the car parks open and not charge people who still may have to go into the town centre or still go into work and can’t work at home.”
It is not yet known whether key workers will remain exempt from charges for any length of time once it is possible to operate the car parks again.
Coun Bailey said it was a ‘fast moving’ situation that was under continual review.
She added: “I think we are dealing with things on a day-by-day basis because things are changing very, very quickly.
“A decision was taken to suspend charges. What happens when they start to be reinstated I don’t know, but obviously that’s a discussion that will take place at that time.”
All pay machines have been emptied of cash and turned off due to bosses’ fear that pay machines could be targeted for vandalism and theft if left unattended for several weeks or longer.
There are also new signs telling people that charging has been suspended, while barriers have been locked in the open position or removed altogether.
A council report states: “It is imperative that we avoid leaving cash in the machines for any sustained period as they will become increasingly attractive to vandalism and attempted theft. If money is acquired unlawfully from one machine, it is highly likely that other machines will be targeted in the same manner."
It also finds that damage caused to equipment as a result of any attempted break-in would 'far outweigh' any potential lost income during the current climate.
A statement on the authority's website adds: “This is a temporary measure, proportionate to the current threat caused by the Coronavirus and will be in place for as long as required to respond to the current situation, and will be reviewed in three months’ time, and at the end of each three month period thereafter, as necessary.”
