Public Information Exchange

Camden shops budget for fines
26/07/2009

Big chains which own sites across Camden are ignoring yellow lines on a daily basis by factoring in the risk of getting tickets into their annual budgets.

Residents fed up with disruptive deliveries at all hours have complained that the supermarket giants are using their financial muscle to ignore the rules.

Camden Council –  has now been told it must do more to stop the stores acting with impunity. Ideas mooted include extra penalties for repeat offenders, which could mean more expensive tickets for a supermarket that has racked up more than a dozen offences.
Four years ago Tesco took over the Crispins Food Hall chain, giving them a retail foothold in smaller, residential shopping streets such as Englands Lane, Belsize Park and Swains Lane, Highgate. They say they have accepted the fact they will receive tickets and have factored the fines into their costs.
In Kentish Town Road alone, supermarkets make up the bulk of around 6,500 tickets in the past six months.
Tesco, which runs one of their smaller Metro late-night stores in Kentish Town Road, have revealed they receive a parking ticket on an almost daily basis as there are double yellow lines outside the shop. They say their drivers have no choice but to park there and then face the consequences.

Both Iceland and Somerfield, who also have branches in the street, receive tickets, although Somerfield say they has been working with Camden Council to find a suitable alternative to dropping goods off only delivering at 7am when their trucks will not slow down traffic and break parking laws.
With a new Sainsbury’s supermarket due to open in the old Woolworths site, some residents say now is the time to bring in stricter delivery times – and insist on green vans running on electricity or gas to cut exhaust fumes.
Kentish Town Road has one of the highest levels of the deadly car pollutant nitrous oxide and critics say the delivery lorries cause congestion that make this problem worse.
Councillor Ralph Scott said “We want businesses to thrive – but they need to work with the community.”