Motorists illegally driving in a bus lane is big business for UK councils, new research has suggested.
In 2017, local authorities issued 880,760 bus lane fines to the tune of £41.86 million, according to a report from Confused.com based on responses to Freedom of Information requests.
The biggest earner was Glasgow City Council, which raked in £6,524,100 after dishing out the most fines (108,735), followed by Cardiff Council (£5,593,490 from 79,907 fines) and Ealing Council (£3,116,100 – 23,970 fines).
However, the most prolific road for bus fines was Oxford High Street, which generated £1.41 million in penalties.
In terms of UK regions, Scotland received the most cash in bus lane fines (£7,633,280), narrowly ahead of London (£7,576,403), with Wales in third (£5,893,930).
Confused.com’s research also found that almost two in five (39 per cent) UK motorists have driven in a bus lane and more than a quarter of those (28 per cent) did so knowingly.
Two in five (41 per cent) blamed unclear signage or road markings while 36 per cent want to see the lanes marked more clearly.
Amanda Stretton, motoring editor at Confused.com, said the amount of cash raised from bus lane fines proved that bus lanes are “one of the most confusing challenges motorists face on our already chaotic roads”.
She added: “Drivers need to be listened to for a change – it’s only right that some of this fine money is invested to make bus lanes and signage clearer.”
Have you been stung by a bus lane fine? Did you manage to successfully challenge it? Let us know in the comments.
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