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Bus Lane Cheats Will Pay the Penalty: 15 September 2009; MOTORISTS who drive in three bus lanes in Liverpool city centre are being warned that they will be caught on camera and will pay the penalty.

From this week the City Council will be using CCTV cameras to enforce the law at:

Lime Street, between Ranelagh Street and Elliot Street; Old Haymarket, between Queensway tunnel roundabout and St Johns Lane and the right turn from Victoria Street into St John’s Lane; and The Strand, the right turn lane into James Street

Initially warnings will be issued but within a few weeks drivers who ignore the bus lanes regulations will be given a £60 fixed penalty notice, reduced to £30 for early payment. An appeals procedure using the Traffic Penalty Tribunal will operate.

As well as buses, cyclists and taxis- both hackneys and private hire vehicles, which display stickers - will be allowed to use the lanes.

Bus lane contraventions will be detected using CCTV cameras, linked to a control room. Recordings will be made of the offence and checked before a penalty notice is issued. There will also be checks that there no mitigating circumstances – such as avoiding broken down vehicles – which would allow the bus lane to be used legitimately.

Surveys have shown that in the three sites identified up to 77% of motorists abuse the bus lane.

“A culture has grown up where drivers regularly ignore bus lanes because they know that there was no enforcement,” said Councillor Peter Millea, Executive Member for Assets and Development. “So, the advantages of having the lanes in improving journey times for public transport has been lost. We are trying to get the right balance between public and private transport and ensure there is good traffic flow around the city and, importantly, in our Year of Environment, reducing pollution.

“One of the reasons why some people are reluctant to use public transport is that buses find it difficult to keep to their timetables. Their reliability would be greatly improved if bus lanes were not congested by motorists illegally using them.

“There is no excuse for driving in these bus lanes. They are all clearly marked and drivers know they are not supposed to be there.

“I would hope that over time we would not have to issue a single penalty notice as the message gets over that we will enforce the lanes. Despite what some people think this is not about raising money but about good traffic management.”

Councillor Tommy Fearns, chair of Merseytravel’s Merseytram and bus committee, said: ”These measures are being taken to ensure we can continue to offer an efficient public transport system to the benefit of everyone on Merseyside.”

An advertising campaign with the slogan “Don’t abuse bus lanes” to alert drivers that camera enforcement will be taking place. is being launched.

Read/Download Dont abuse bus lanes leaflet.pdf; Back to Media Centre