“When I’m working now, customers say ‘Can you hurry up? I don’t want to get a ticket’,” said Osman Mohammed of Fresh N Fruity. He can no longer keep an eye on the popular parking spot on Croydon’s Frith Road because of a new partition blocking his window.
Alongside his main role of making smoothies behind the counter, Osman also acts as a lookout for his Croydon customers, checking for parking wardens on Church Street looking to hand out fines. “When they get a ticket they end up saying your drinks are costing us money,” Osman told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).
A few doors down, Dwarknath Sharma of the Save and Smile hardware shop told the LDRS: “Customers come and buy £20 worth of products, but then get a £60 ticket. I saw it happen to a woman recently, she was not happy.”
Shop owners and market traders on nearby Surrey Street say these parking fines are driving customers away from their businesses.
They say this is adding further pressure to small businesses at a time when footfall in the town centre is struggling.
In response, long-time Surrey Street Market trader and Chairman of the Croydon Business Association, Jose Joseph, has started a campaign and petition calling on Croydon Council to introduce 30 minutes of free parking in bays around the town centre. This petition, he claims, has attracted unanimous support from business owners and shoppers he has spoken to.
During a visit by the LDRS to the market, which is one of England’s oldest, Jose said: “It is very quiet at the moment; it should be busier at this time of year.”
He told the LDRS that he sees six or seven people a day being ticketed, including market traders themselves. He said removing the financial barrier would help bring customers back and support struggling traders, who say parking in locations like Centrale shopping centre can be costly.
On his petition, he says other boroughs that have introduced similar measures have seen significant improvements in business turnover and customer satisfaction. “Croydon deserves the same chance for revitalisation,” he said.
When questioned whether Croydon’s roads could take this kind of proposal, Jose said he believes surrounding streets can cope with the demand, particularly during weekday working hours.
Mohammed Shafiq of Mr Meat believes the restrictive parking enforcement is harming the businesses the council says it wants to support. “They used to be more lenient, but in the last year it seems like they have been giving people no time at all.”
He added: “The same council that is charging us tax are sending officers to take away our business.”
From behind his counter overlooking Church Street, Shafiq said he has also noticed how the parking restrictions have changed the type of customer who comes to shop, and how much they spend.
“We have seen a big decrease in higher-spend customers, who would come here to buy oil or big sacks of rice,” he said. “They don’t want to chance coming here in a car; instead we get smaller-spend customers who only spend around £10.”
Next door on Surrey Street, which will soon benefit from £814,000 of Greater London Authority funding, Jose said many of his fellow business association members are losing revenue daily and believes some may not survive without swift action.
“I started this business with £500; now the cost of it all and the falling footfall means many people cannot afford to get a shop. This petition is the first step towards making it better,” he said.
He says he is yet to receive a response from Croydon Mayor Jason Perry.
A spokesperson for Croydon Council told the LDRS: “We celebrate Surrey Street Market’s history and unique identity, and it is a vital part of the wider regeneration of Croydon town centre.
"We have been working with community groups, residents and traders, to make sure their voices are heard on the Amplifying Surrey Street project.
“In the New Year we will be launching ‘A Vision for Surrey Street’, which sets out our plans to protect and drive growth of the historic market, with input from the community, including Mr Joseph. Improvements have been prioritised through this engagement and together we are developing designs for the Greater London Authority and council’s Growth Zone funded project.
“We want as many people to visit the market as possible, which is served by great public transport of trams, trains and buses.
"Parking in the central area is limited and for that reason we cannot permit 30 minutes free parking, like we do in other parts of the borough.
“We will continue to speak to people who hold Surrey Street close to their heart, as we want the area to flourish, whilst still keeping the history and identity that makes the market unique.”
