PROPOSALS for new Controlled Parking Zones (CPZ) have been rejected in Highams Park but will be introduced near Chingford station following a consultation with residents.

The council has been holding a vote over the plans in the last few weeks and has now partly revealed the results.

It said a majority of respondents had voted in favour of the new measures in seven streets in the immediate vicinity of Chingford station.

A CPZ will now be introduced in Connaught Road, Cart Lane, Springfield Rd, Cross Road, Garfield Road, Stanley Road and Queens Grove Road.

However the plans were rejected everywhere else.

The proposals caused controversy due to claims they would cost residents and businesses money.

More than 700 people signed a petition against the plans - but 300 signed a rival petition supporting them.

Conservative opposition leader Cllr Matt Davis said most residents were against new parking measures except for near the station because of concerns about commuter parking.

Cllr Clyde Loakes, the cabinet member for environment, denied claims that there had been problems with the distribution of the voting forms.

However he revealed that the authority had changed its contractors who were responsible for delivering consultation papers during a similar exercise in Leyton and Leytonstone, which was criticised by anti-CPZ campaigners.

He said more than 50 per cent of households took part in the consultation but did not provide an exact figure.

Cllr Loakes said: "The number of residents who responded to the CPZ consultation was incredibly high – over half the people in the area returned the form and in some roads 85 per cent of residents responded.

“The result is that seven roads have voted in favour of a CPZ being established, with 67 per cent of residents in those roads voting in favour of the idea.

"We will now look to work up designs for the implementation of a CPZ in that seven road area."

He added: “The degree of engagement in this process means that this result reflects very keenly what residents wanted, which is obviously of paramount importance.

"It’s also a ringing endorsement of the lengths we went to in order to ensure that the people of North Chingford were made aware of the consultation, received their forms and cast their votes.

“In Highams Park there was also a fantastic response, but there was not the clear cut majority required to implement a CPZ in any part of the area.”