PRICE hikes on Oxford’s park-and-ride services have turned Kidlington into a car park, residents claim.

Oxford City Council introduced a £1.50 per day fee to park at the Seacourt, Redbridge and Peartree park-and-ride sites in October.

But parking at Water Eaton park and ride, which is owned by Oxfordshire County Council, remains free.

This has caused the Water Eaton site to become so popular the car park is often full and drivers are now parking in side streets, residents said.

Oxford Road resident Michael Makepeace, 70, said: “Our road has not been badly affected because we are more or less full already, but the problem is now spreading out into service roads. Kidlington is a big car park now.

“The main problem for residents is visibility when you are trying to get out of your driveway. Trying to see oncoming traffic is very difficult when you are doing it through other cars. It is dangerous.”

Gosford and Water Eaton Parish Council clerk Carl Smith said he had done a parking survey of Water Eaton park-and-ride and said there were now far fewer spaces.

He added: “There were also quite a lot more cars all the way along Oxford Road’s service roads.

“Rather than joining the queues for spaces at Water Eaton, people are parking on side roads near bus stops and catching buses from there – and it is getting worse.”

Kidlington Parish Council member Chris Robins said park-and-ride charges were likely to have caused more parking in side streets. He said: “It would be difficult to prove that it was as a direct result of the charges, but the problem happened at the same time which has made us suspicious.

“The concern for us is the parking in service roads – outside people’s homes – along Oxford Road and elsewhere.

“It restricts traffic flow on the service roads and some residents are particularly up in arms about it. ”

He said residents-only parking restrictions or a time limit on parking in Oxford Road was needed.

The city council brought in the charges after it took back control of the three park and ride sites from the county council in October.

City council spokesman Louisa Dean said: “We appreciate that some commuters may not wish to pay for park-and-ride and we sympathise with residents who may have been affected by the increase number of cars in their streets.

“We will raise this issue with the county council who may wish to install residents’ parking zones in that area.”

As well as Water Eaton, the county council has also retained control of Thornhill park-and-ride, which also remains free to park.

As reported by the Oxford Mail, residents complained about congestion at the site.

In December, residents close to Seacourt said the new parking charges were causing people to park outside their homes.

They said driveways were often blocked by motorists, who could park there all day for free and catch a bus or cycle into the city.