Residents in a busy Knutsford street are still waiting to hear if they will ever be able to officially park outside their own homes.

Macclesfield Borough Council said on Monday it was still discussing plans to decriminalise parking in Gaskell Avenue.

"The authority will continue to address the adoption of decriminalisation but this is a long project, which is estimated at two years from a decision," said a spokesman. If councillors agree to decriminalise parking across the borough then it will mean that Cheshire County Council is responsible for parking enforcement instead of the police.

Under the plans the council would keep parking fines, which would pay for more traffic wardens.

Residents would be able to park to pay in areas of Knutsford at a cheaper rate.

Visitors would be charged more or allowed to park for a short time only.

But the council has warned that it could take at least two years to decriminalise parking and even longer to introduce residents' only parking schemes. Residents in Gaskell Avenue can currently park only in their street for up to four hours at a time.

This week one Gaskell Avenue resident said she hoped residents' only parking could be introduced sooner.

"We don't want to have to wait years for a result," she said.

"It would be nice to come home from work now and park my car outside my house all night."

ssmith@guardiangrp.co.uk