SIR, Tony Falla's letter, in last week's Beacon and another letter a couple of weeks ago really got to the crux of the matter as far as the parkking charges at Waitrose are concerned. Yes, it does seem Waitrose were entitled to introduce parking charges and, yes, it is good to be able to park easly. However, the town car parks give you two hours parking for 80 pence so how can Waitrose justify charging 80 pence for half an hour, especially when, if you want to reclaim the parking fee, you must complete your shopping within half an hour? Surely an hour would be more reasonable? As previous letter writers pointed out, they usually spend between £10 and £20 but rarely £25 so they are not able to take advantage of longer parking time, which is allowed when spending this amount. So do not stop to talk to a friend, do not got in for something unusual which requires you to search the aisles, perhaps have to ask an assistant and then wait for them to come back to you and do not be too old to walk quickly to make your purchases. I can only assume that those in the top tier of Waitrose management, came up with the parking costs and times, after checking legal aspects of course, without looking into local circumstances and with little thought for the needs of the local shoppers. F. Chamberlain (Mitchel Troy)