Croydon Escort

Croydon is a town in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Croydon. It is situated 9.5 miles (15.3 km) south of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 11 metropolitan centres in Greater London.[1]
Croydon is located on the natural transport corridor between London and England's south coast, just to the north of two gaps in the North Downs, one followed by the route of the A23 Brighton Road from Purley to Merstham and the other followed by the A22 from Purley to the M25 Godstone interchange.
Historically a part of Surrey, at the time of the Norman conquest of England Croydon had a church, a mill and around 365 inhabitants (as recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086). Croydon expanded during the Middle Ages as a market town and a centre for charcoal production, leather tanning and brewing. The Surrey Iron Railway from Croydon to Wandsworth opened in 1803 and was the world's first horse-drawn railway, which later developed into an important means of transport – facilitating Croydon's growth as a commuter town for the City of London and beyond.
In the early 20th century, Croydon was an important industrial area, known for metal working, car manufacture and its airport. In the mid 20th century these sectors were replaced by a retailing and service economy, brought about by massive redevelopment which saw the rise of office blocks and the Whitgift shopping centre. Croydon was amalgamated into Greater London in 1965. Road traffic is now diverted away from a largely pedestrianised town centre, but its main railway station, East Croydon, is still a major hub within the national railway transport system. The town is expected to have its urban planning changed as part of Croydon Vision 2020.

In more modern times Croydon has developed an important centre for shopping, with the construction of the Whitgift Centre, which opened in 1969. The Fairfield Halls arts centre and event venue opened in 1962. The Warehouse Theatre opened in 1977. The 1990s saw further changes intended to give the town a more attractive image. These include the closure of North End to vehicles in 1989 and the opening of the Croydon Clocktower arts centre in 1994. Tramlink began operation in May 2000. A new equally large shopping centre, Centrale, opened in 2004 opposite the Whitgift Centre, straddling the site of the smaller Drummond Centre and what was once a large branch of C&A. There are plans for a large new shopping centre, Park Place, which will replace most of the eastern edge of the shopping district including St George's Walk; the redevelopment of the Croydon Gateway site; and extensions of Tramlink to Purley, Streatham, Lewisham and Crystal Palace. Croydon has become the second-largest place to shop in the south east, after central London, offering a wide range of shops and department stores. It is also home to many high density buildings such as the Nestlé Tower, being London's third main CBD, after the Square Mile and the Docklands and South London's main business centre. The Croydon area is served by various hospitals of which the main one is Mayday University Hospital in London Road. The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said he would support Croydon becoming an official city.