The long-awaited improvements, welcomed by local businesses, aim to prevent the frequent flooding that has plagued shops and streets during heavy downpours.
Transport for London (TfL) will begin maintenance works on A23 Foxley Lane and the Purley Gyratory area next Monday (January 27) as part of the new flood prevention scheme.
Many local business owners have faced costly disruptions due to flooding and have expressed relief that the issue is finally being addressed.
Mary Coughlan, owner of Lucinda’s Dress Shop, a fixture in Purley for 40 years, has been hit hard by flooding. Flooding has ruined expensive dresses during heavy downpours, causing financial losses and emotional stress.
She told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “We are all so vulnerable at the bottom of the hill. I am absolutely desperate for it to work.
“Times are already tough at the moment, but to have the flooding on top of that is enough to put the kibosh on things. It will be an absolute godsend if TfL sorts it out.”
When the LDRS spoke to Mary last year, she had recently experienced ‘terrible’ flooding that rose above her back door and inundated the popular Purley shop. Her position at the bottom of the hill means her shop bears the brunt of flash flooding in the Purley Valley.
Despite previous plans to address the flooding in Purley, Mary has had to take flood defence into her own hands. Every time a heavy downpour is predicted, she and her staff pile up sandbags at the shop’s back door.
She told the LDRS: “When the heavens open and we have a real monsoon, we don’t have a hope then. We have a bottleneck at the back of the shop, and without fail, it comes down like the rapids and builds up like a little reservoir.”
Councillor Samir Dwesar, who has worked closely with local businesses and Croydon Council to push for these much-needed improvements, expressed relief that the works were finally going ahead.
He told the LDRS: “Working with Purley Business Improvement District (BID) and Mary Coughlan, I am thrilled that TfL has listened to our calls for action and has announced major works to address flood mitigation within Purley & Woodcote following years of problems locally.”
“It should not have taken this long, but it is better late than never.”
Simon Cripps of the Purley BID said: “This is a major victory for our local businesses, who have faced devastating flooding in the past. I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to the Purley BID team, local councillors, Croydon Council, TfL, and Thames Water, all of whom have listened to the concerns of Purley BID members and worked tirelessly to achieve this result.”
The A23, a major route linking Croydon and Purley to Central London, the M25, and Gatwick, sees over 100,000 vehicles pass through daily.
The planned works include upgrading existing gullies, roadside barriers, kerbs, and foot ways, installing new drainage channels, reshaping verges, constructing a new fence, and re-levelling the footpath next to the verge.
Residents and motorists have been told to expect some disruption over the next few months of work, which Thames Water will also carry out. The first batch of works will include 24-hour, three-lane closures on Foxley Lane for over three weeks.
During the ongoing works, there will be a single eastbound lane restriction outside David Clifford Court and Purley Library to ensure the safety of contractors.
In the final week of works, access off Foxley Lane near David Clifford Court will be closed to allow the construction of a new drainage channel affecting the rear of properties on Russell Hill Road (nos. 6-13).
Over the weekend of 22-24 March, TfL will carry out additional work, including repairs to piping and replacing gully pots. Then, on the weekend of 30-31 March, further excavation and non-intrusive repairs will occur to fix a damaged pipe.
The timetable
Diversions will be in place during phases 1.1, 2.0, 2.1, and 2.2, with clear signage indicating the diversion routes.
Drivers looking to turn right from Foxley Lane onto Russell Hill Road will be redirected via Pampisford Road and Edgehill Road to join Purley Way.
TfL will also provide signage at suspended bus stops, directing passengers to the nearest alternative stops. Bus services will follow the diversion route along Pampisford Road.
Dwesar added: “Whilst I appreciate these works will cause some disruption, I hope this is outweighed by the meaningful difference the upgrades should bring to local residents and businesses like Lucinda’s who have suffered so greatly from problem flooding.”
“For Mary and many other business owners, the works can’t come soon enough. “I am really pinning my hopes on this being effective,” she added.
