Parking wardens have issued more than £40,000 worth of fines in one small city street during the course of three years.

East Street, in the city centre, is just 400ft long, but has been the focus of so many tickets one driver believes it is a "trap" for motorists.

During the past year, 552 tickets have been issued to motorists parking on the single yellow lines in the road, with 223 of those handed out on Sundays.

One of those caught out was Adam Krupa, from Oadby, who was fined after parking there in November. He has refused to pay his £70 fine and says he will go to court to challenge the case.

Mr Krupa claims the street is seen as a parking warden's "bread and butter" and signs which warn drivers it is illegal to park there are too small and in the wrong place.

After getting the fine, Mr Krupa used the Freedom of Information Act to ask Leicester City Council how much money it had collected from other motorists in East Street since it took over parking enforcement – and discovered it was £40,000.

He said: "One of the biggest shocks was the amount of revenue generated from this tiny street.

"I'd parked for 10 minutes and went into Dunelm Mill opposite – when I got back I'd got the ticket.

"After speaking to people, I'm told this is happening day in, day out, and that everybody is getting caught because they think they can park there.

"Double yellow lines should be painted and the signs are too small – it really is a trap."

The fine for parking on yellow lines is £70, which is reduced to £35 if it is paid within 14 days.

Kim Pelham, manager of Dunelm Mill, which sells soft furnishings and home wares in East Street, agreed.

He said: "It happens all the time, especially on a Sunday.

"There are usually three or four wardens out there waiting for people, they know it's hard to tell if you can park there. The signs aren't very clear and they should really paint double yellow lines."

Last year, more than 56,000 tickets were given out in the city – equivalent to £3.6m in fines. In 2007, 65,000 tickets were issued.

According to Mr Krupa's Freedom of Information request, the most common reasons people were ticketed in East Street was because they contravened rules against waiting and loading.

Under Traffic Signs and General Directions 2002 legislation, signs on the street show no parking is allowed from 7.30am to 6pm, and no loading between 4pm and 6pm Monday to Friday.

A city council spokesman said: "The signage in East Street meets all of the requirements of the relevant legislation.

"Single yellow lines always denote parking restrictions and these restrictions are clearly shown on the signs on East Street.

"In all such areas the onus is on motorists to assure themselves that they are obeying the appropriate parking restrictions for the area concerned."

Since Leicester City Council took over the enforcement of on-street parking from the police in 2007, more than 30,000 parking tickets have been challenged.

Cash generated from parking tickets must, by law, be spent on transport projects such as concessionary travel fares for pensioners.