Bus lane nets £4.5m in fines

A BUS lane has raked in more than £ .5million in fines in just one year.

Almost 70,000 motorists were caught out on a single route, with each offender receiving a £65 penalty.

The road in Surbiton, south-west London, has restrictions allowing only cyclists, buses, taxis and authorised access to homes. Bollards and signs were put up last November as part of Kingston council’s £30million GoCycle scheme, funded by the mayor of London.

Since then 68,820 penalty charge notices have been sent to motorists. Starting at £65, and rising to £195 if not paid within 28 days, the minimum value of the fines is estimated at £ , 73,300.

Local mother Helen Hinton said: ‘It’s a huge amount of money the council has made for no good reason – you hardly see any cyclists using it.’ Councillor Phil Doyle said: ‘The charges are set by a London-wide body called London Councils to ensure charges are consistent.’