A GROUP of residents who say they live on the "forgotten council estate of the borough" have formed an action group to improve their area – and tackle motorists who are ruining it.
Parts of Tollers Lane estate, in Old Coulsdon, have been described as "looking like the Somme", because of motorists cutting corners and driving over grass verges.
The estate's particularly narrow lanes, which are more than half a century old, are contributing to the problem, those living there say.
Elizebeth Brooks, 61, who previously campaigned to get an improved 466 bus service, has been instrumental in setting up the new group.
She said: "We are really serious about what we're doing. We want to try to get work done that's not getting done.
"We're so fed up with the state of the verges. Some residents, delivery vans and other vehicles drive all over them.
"We want something done to stop it, so the estate looks nice like it used to all those years ago."
Among the solutions proposed at the first Tollers Estate Residents Action Group meeting on Monday evening were the construction of bollards, road widening and reminding neighbours to stay on the road with a letter campaign.
One member, Joe Saubolle, pointed out that the estate was never designed with the traffic it faces at the moment in mind.
"A big part of the problem is because the cars are now multiple times s bigger than what the estate was designed to cope with.
"It wasn't built for all these cars."
The fledgling group's chairman, Rafe Stewart, said he was in favour of posts that could stop the problem once and for all.
Most of those in the group agreed that issues on the estate, located at the southern tip of the borough, were in danger of being forgotten about.
"It's the forgotten council estate on the edge of the borough," said Lisa Goold.
"Because we're in Coulsdon, there's an assumption that the area is affluent, but we're just like anywhere else."
Coulsdon East councillor James Thompson met with the group earlier this week to discuss their concerns and told them he'd ask officers to look into the problem.
A spokesman for Croydon Council said: "The council would ask residents of Tollers Estate to get in touch with their concerns so we can look at ways of addressing them."
The group will be holding an EGM at the Tollers Estate community room on March 9, all living nearby are welcome.
