Convinced bus lane fines are about cash

THIS letter is just to raise awareness about the crafty way the Leicester City Council operates regarding bus lane fines funding.

You may be one of the innocent, well-meaning drivers who have recently or historically just filtered into a bus lane in Leicester in order to avoid collision with other vehicles at the last minute arrow on the road markings and found yourself paying a fine.

Or a newcomer to the city and coming off the motorway into the Narborough Road in heavy traffic in the rain at night not been able to see all the small bland signs for the camera bus lane.

You get into the lane to turn left at Fullhurst Avenue and wham! Fine.

Your sin? You went into the bus lane a couple of yards behind the designated arrow on the road.

It was a reasonable distance from the turning to give you a chance of turning safely, but you see the Leicester City Council gets thousands – no, millions – into the coffers from these cameras,and isn’t going to give you any leeway.

No use complaining as only one or two ever get let off from millions of complaints.

They bargain on your proactive driving or your ignorance of the city roads.

The train station’s new crazy road layout is the latest trap. Most people will reasonably assume the road into the station is by the station and doesn’t lead away out from it.

Now for the revelation. In September 2019, it was reported in the i newspaper that councils rake in many millions per year from bus lane fines.

Leicester City Council is in the top five:

■ Glasgow: 108,735 fines, totalling £6.5 million;

■ Cardiff: 79,907 fines, £5.6 million;

■ Ealing: 23,970 fines, £3.1 million;

■ Leicester: 57,320 fines, £2.3 million;

■ Wolverhampton: 73,165 fines, £2.2 million.

This speaks for itself. Basically, don’t vote for them in future and change the mayor.

Name and address supplied