According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, these plans are still being developed and the authority is expected to launch a public consultation this month to assess how much citizens would be willing to pay and during what hours they would prefer to see the rates implemented .

Paul Hewett, the council’s executive member for real estate, said: “The challenge we face is that time is running out. Every month we spend discussing an alternative option costs us dearly.

“We must act now. I am absolutely clear that these are difficult choices to make, but we must be fully aware of the impact of the decisions we make.”

The council has already agreed a spend of £56,000 to cover project management and communications costs and recently allocated a further £32,000 to undertake initial detailed design and technical preparation work.

The authority said ongoing budgetary pressures were forcing it to find alternative measures – namely the introduction of charges – to pay the current car park maintenance bill, which stands at £450,000 a year.

Charges are expected to differ from town to town and Sam Chapman-Allen, the council leader, admitted some car parks could be “no charge at all”.