Some residents and small business owners in Hoboken are pushing back on the new parking enforcement pilot program.

They say they are concerned over transparency, ethics - and add that it’s bad for business.

Ernie Reyes owns City Paint at Ace Hardware, and he says he’s losing money.

"We’ve seen a large decrease in business since this pilot program started. It’s really affected our business. We’re a hardware store so people need to park and make a quick stop," Reyes said.

C.L.E.A.R, which stands for Camera-based License plate Enforcement for Access and Response times is part of the Vision Zero initiative. It uses cameras to catch people breaking road rules, like double parking, blocking bike lanes or parking in loading zones.

City of Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla said compliance is up and the number of parking violations is down.

"You’re seeing freight trucks go into the places they should be, and that’s great for business because that freight truck would be in a loading zone instead of in the middle of the street causing a huge public safety hazard," Mayor Bhalla said.

Andrew Wilson, a bicyclist and the executive director for Bike Hoboken, says busy Washington Street is now safer.

"That’s made it safer for cyclists, that’s made it safer for transit riders, that’s made Washington Street a much less chaotic place," Wilson said.

According to City Hall, freight vehicle use has increased more than 115% in loading zones. Bus, bike lanes and double-parking violations are down over 58%. And turnover in loading zones has increased 8% - meaning 2,100 more vehicles are able to access loading zones per week.

4th Ward Councilman Ruben Ramos Jr. was the only councilperson to vote "no" to the program saying the roll out was quote “poorly done.”

"The reach out to the business owners on Washington Street was poorly done. The residents were unaware; our visitors were unaware that this was happening from the beginning," Ramos Jr. said.

The cameras can be found along Washington Street between Observer Highway and 8th Street.

There’s currently a pause on enforcement for commercial vehicle violations to allow ample notice about the program, which the city says will remain through the end of the year.