The director of a tourist attraction which has seen its visitor numbers nearly halve since parking fees were introduced is taking early retirement.

Andrew Jackson is leaving after 25 years at Wakehurst Place near Ardingly. It marks the end of a 31 year career with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, which operate the country estate.

Catharine Pusey has been appointed acting director.

Richard Deverell, director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, said: “I have never met a more dedicated, hard-working or loyal public servant. I will miss his sage judgement, deep expertise and good humour.”

He praised Mr Jackson for transforming Wakehurst into a “horticultural gem with one of most important botanical collections in Europe.”

The news comes as year to date figures from April to July show there were just 62,843 visitors in 2014/15 compared to 130,052 in 2013/14.

Parking fees were introduced for the first time in April last year to tackle a £1.4 million deficit.

While it is free for the first half hour, it is £2 for the first hour, £5 for two and £10 per day.

Visitors who purchase a day ticket, season ticket holders and Friends of Kew are entitled to free parking. National Trust members still get free entry to the gardens.

Nearly 1,900 people have signed a petition calling for the parking charges to be dropped.

Wakehurst Place has running costs of £2.2 million, the majority of which is absorbed by Kew.

The National Trust contributes £80,000 from an endowment by Wakehurst’s last private owner Sir Henry Price for the management of the house and gardens.

Freedom of Information requests also revealed the venue’s retail and catering revenue was down £488,000.

A spokeswoman for Kew said the fall in visitor numbers was not the full story. She added: “In the first week of April we saw a strong resurgence in visitor numbers – a 42% increase on last year. This uplift marks the start of a bright new future for Wakehurst.

"We ended the 2014/15 financial year with a total of 180,000 visitors. Prior to 2014 approximately only 5% of our total visitors contributed directly towards supporting and nurturing Wakehurst.

"Over the past year close on 75% of our visitors are now making a direct contribution, which puts us in a vastly improved position.”

A spokeswoman from the National Trust said they were “absolutely committed” to ensuring a strong future and said introducing parking charges was a “difficult decision.”

National Trust member of 26 years Charles Foster, of Staplefield Drive in Brighton, visited Wakehurst on Sunday.

He said the car park was less than half full. In previous years he said he struggled to get a space.

The 84-year-old said: “I’ve now found a place where it costs more to park than in Brighton.

“It is such a shame as it is a lovely place to visit and I have been there regularly for 20 years. I think this will deter me from visiting again.”