Residents in a south London borough have been accused of parking "illegally" in their own drives by the local council.Labour-run Lambeth Council has reportedly cracked down on residents parking on their own driveways in the Streatham Vale neighbourhood. The local authority has demanded that people shell out ￡4,000 to mark their driveways as official parking spots, enabling them to "legally" drive over a section of the pavement to their homes.

       The new "illegal crossover" charges could rake in up to ￡1 million for the council by targeting 200 homes in Lambeth. Officials have marked homes where the offence is currently being committed with a red X on a map, according to The Telegraph. The ￡4,000 cost, to correct "unauthorised vehicle access", would also require the added costs of a lowered kerb and associated planning permission.

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       According to a council pamphlet distributed to the affected households, 4% of vehicles in the area were found to be in breach of the rules.

       Residents were warned: “If these accesses are not formalised in accordance with the council’s policy, then parking bays may be placed in front of them blocking access."

       The authority also claimed the move would "support resilience to the climate emergency" by limiting "free [and] unrestricted parking".

       Neil Salt, of the Streatham and Croydon North Conservatives, accused the council of "using car owners as cash cows" to aid its own financial pressures.

       Mr Salt said the "crossovers" had been used for years, with no one "batting an eyelid", and also questioned why Lambeth Council's dropped kerb fee was larger than the ￡3,000 cost charged by other local authorities.

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       Ashad Khan, 48, who has lived in Streatham Vale for 20 years and drives a hybrid and electric vehicle that he charges from his drive, also felt “penalised” by the council.

       Mr Khan said: “It’s an excuse to make money.

       “We paid a premium for these vehicles because they are environmentally friendly. We will now have to pay to park in front of our house or consider paying thousands of pounds for a legal crossover.”

       The clampdown comes after Lambeth Council launched a consultation about introducing residents’ parking permits for Streatham Vale, in a bid to stop commuters parking in residential areas and getting the train into central London.

       The local authority also said that driving over pavements caused damage that required council repairs and suggested that cars overhanging onto walkways were posing an obstruction to pedestrians.

       The Express has contacted Lambeth Council for comment.