Motorists ‘shocked’ by council’s £2.4m driving fine total

Motorists have called the £2.4 million Nottingham City Council has made in 2016 driving fines ‘unacceptable’.

Yesterday the Nottingham roads where drivers have been issued with the most motoring fines were revealed after a Freedom of Information Act request.

Around £1.5 million alone has gone to the authority from people caught travelling in designated lanes or roads only meant for busses.

Individual fines vary depending on the contravention but tend to be around £60 per offence, dropping to around £30 if paid within 14 days of the date of issue.

Shakespeare Street is the location where the most fines have been dished out, where a camera-monitored bus gate, installed last year, resulted in penalties totalling £460,658.43p.

Some people said they thought signage was not obvious enough, but others said they thought the council’s approach was reasonable.

The council, meanwhile, insists traffic enforcement is important for road safety and they have installed adequate signage to enforce the restrictions.

A worker at Nottingham Trent University’s Boots Library, located on the junction of Goldsmith Street and Shakespeare Street, who wished to remain anonymous, said the signage warning people against driving in the bus gate on Shakespeare Street is “poor”.

Around £500,000 has been accrued from Shakespeare Street bus gate.
Around £500,000 has been accrued from Shakespeare Street bus gate.

He added: “It used to be a freeway, but it’s not very well signposted. The council is very anti-car to the detriment of Nottingham city centre.”

Victor Brown, a painter and former student at Nottingham Trent University, said: “It’s a dog-eat-dog situation with the council. They don’t give people any leeway.”

He added: “They’re scraping all the money they can together. I disagree with it.”

He also called for Shakespeare Street to be a “free parking area for students and lecturers”.

The second-highest area, Lower Parliament Street (westbound), generated £318,172 – all of which was extracted from drivers being in bus lanes – and Carrington Street, in third, has accrued £95,920.

Carrington Street Bus Gate has amassed £95,920 in bus lane fines.
Carrington Street Bus Gate has amassed £95,920 in bus lane fines.

Richard Buckwell, who is retired and from Sherwood, said: “If the council want people not to use their cars in town then they need to make it a lot easier to use public transport. We need an integrated transport system where people can jump from bus to tram easily.

He added: “People end up using their cars where perhaps they’d choose not to if they had a better choice (of public transport). That’s the way to do it; not fine people or penalise people, but provide incentives to use public transport.”

Top ten streets which have accrued the highest total of council motoring fines:

  1. Shakespeare Street (bus gate westbound) £460,658.43p
  2. Lower Parliament (westbound) £118,172
  3. Carrington Street bus gate (near Station Street) £95,920
  4. Cheapside / Poultry (bus gate) £95,420
  5. Milton Street (southbound) £80,069
  6. Friar Lane (bus gate) £71,878.52p
  7. Goldsmith Street £70,365
  8. Carrington Street bus gate (near Canal Street) £66,985
  9. Market Street (bus gate) £65,317.01p
  10. Carlton Street £57,306

Figures apply January 1 2016- September 30 2016

Thomas Flower, of Southwell, is studying a sports law masters degree at Nottingham Trent University. He said: “I’m quite shocked they [the council] have accrued that much money. Adequate signage, a couple of firm warnings and a three strikes and you’re out rule [would be better]. £60, that’s a day’s wage for most people. It’s totally not acceptable.”

Ben Robbins, a first year economics student at the university, said: “I’ve noticed the Government’s cut funding to local councils and they’ve got to make back the money they spend somehow.”

“I’m surprised there’s [been so many fines] on Shakespeare Street,” he added.

Roy Mullin said: “Unfortunately, I got caught in a bus lane. I didn’t realise it was a 24-hour one. It happened around a year ago in Lower Parliament Street. Nice earner for the council.”

Steve Hunt, traffic manager at Nottingham City Council, said traffic enforcement is important to “reduce congestion, maintain road safety and help turnover in parking bays to increase footfall for local shops and businesses”.

He added: “Like all councils we have to have put up signage for us to legally enforce the area along with advance warning of the restrictions.

“The money from fines is invested in transport improvements, which include measures that help to make us one of the least congested and least car dependent cities in the UK.”

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