Petitions against proposals to build flats at tube stations in Barnet and Enfield have attracted more than 5,000 signatures.

Campaigners fear developments planned by Transport for London (TfL) at Cockfosters and High Barnet Underground stations will be out of character with their suburban surroundings and lead to the loss of commuter parking.

Residents’ groups and Chipping Barnet MP Theresa Villiers are among those calling for a re-think.

Ms Villiers has submitted a petition with 1,672 signatures to Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, calling on him to scrap the plans for High Barnet station.

More than 2,000 people have signed a separate petition set up by action group Preserve Our Suburbs against the same development.

Nearly 1,900 people have signed a petition organised by Cockfosters Local Area Residents Association against the plans for Cockfosters station.

The schemes could see 450 homes built at High Barnet station and 400 at Cockfosters station, with some or all of the commuter parking spaces lost.

Similar developments are being planned for Arnos Grove and Finchley Central tube stations.

The schemes, which TfL says will provide publicly available disabled car parking spaces, will have to be approved by the councils’ planning committees before work can begin.

Theresa Villiers, MP for Chipping Barnet, said: “Feelings against these totally inappropriate plans are running high. By continuing, the Mayor makes it clear every day he does not care about the suburbs.

“These suburban station car parks are heavily used by commuters. They are also an important facility for residents to use in the evenings and at weekends to enable them to get into central London to see friends and family or for leisure or cultural purposes.

“Where will people park when they are built over? People with mobility difficulties find it especially hard to get to High Barnet tube station by walking or using public transport because of the steep hill.

“It’s also the case that main road next to the station is visibly subsiding. It is therefore a crazy idea to consider putting a massive new development there.”

A TfL spokesperson said: “As one of London’s largest landowners, we are striving to build the homes that the capital and Londoners desperately need, bringing forward thousands of homes on dozens of sites across London in locations in close proximity to the transport network, which is where people want to live and are the most sustainable sites to develop.

“These proposals are a fantastic opportunity to deliver affordable, high quality homes at pace, while also generating significant ongoing revenue to reinvest into the transport network.

“We are discussing our early thoughts about how these sites could look and no final decisions have been made yet. We have undertaken a period of engagement, so that we can understand local people’s priorities for the area.

“We look forward to discussing the opportunities with the local community and stakeholders when we hold exhibition events next month, and we will continue to engage as the proposals progress.”