NEWS: UK Councils collect £42m from bus lane fines

Local authorities handed out 888,760 bus lane penalties in 2017, with one road alone generating £1.4million in fines

Motorists in Great Britain paid £41.86 million for driving in bus lanes in 2017, with £6.5 million worth of fines being handed out by one city council alone.

New research has revealed authorities handed out 888,760 bus lane fines, with the most fine-heavy road – Oxford High Street – generating £1.41 million in penalties. Glasgow City Council handed out the most fines – 108,735 – raising £6,524,100. Cardiff Council was next, fining 79,907 motorists to the tune of £5,593,490, while Ealing Council was third, taking in £3,116,100 from 23,970 fines.

While many might expect Londoners to have paid the most bus lane penalties, Scotland actually saw the most infringements. Glasgow City Council and Aberdeen City Council caught 145,408 motorists combined – equating to fines of £7.6 million, and 18 percent of the total penalties issued by the councils who shared their data.

A survey found that 39 per cent of UK motorists admitted to having driven in a bus lane, with 48 per cent doing so unknowingly, with 41 percent blaming unclear signage or road markings. 

Not all bus lane infractions were innocent mistakes, though, with 28 percent of motorists who have driven lane admitting to doing so on purpose. Of the drivers who have found themselves in a bus lane, 35 per cent received fines, but 17 percent of these motorists were able to successfully challenge the fine. 

The data also shows 36 percent want to see the lanes marked more clearly, with 41 percent saying revenue made from the fines should be spent on making bus lane signage clearer.