Eco warrior council rakes in £1m from bus lane fines in just six months
Bristol City Council has made the equivalent of about £7,400 per day from a bus gate on Cumberland Road in Bristol between January 1 and May 14, new figures show
A council has raked in more than £1million in fines from a contentious bus gate - in less than half a year.
Bristol City Council has been cashing in approximately £7,400 daily from the Cumberland Road bus gate between January 1 and May 14, recently released figures show. To date, a staggering 34,393 fines have been issued to drivers passing through it.
The bus gate prioritises public transport by allowing only buses, cycles, taxis and motorcycles to enter the city centre via Cumberland Road.
Drivers are slapped with a £35 penalty charge notice for driving through the bus gate, with some blaming Google Maps for still indicating that the quickest route into town is along Cumberland Road.
Figures obtained through a BBC Freedom of Information request reveal that income from the bus gate was 20 times higher than any other in the city during the same period. In total, the Cumberland Road bus gate has generated a whopping £1,010,335 in fines.
The total revenue from fines across all 19 bus gates in the city amounted to £1.39million, as reported by the BBC. The second most lucrative bus gate was Victoria Street (Bristol Bridge) at £59,105, followed by Baldwin Street (Junction High Street) at £53,550.
These figures were released following claims by a local man that the gate was 'unlawful' and 'defective'. Matt Sanders, a graphic designer from Windmill Hill in Bristol, has spent months gathering evidence about the bus gate.
He alleges that the signage contravenes national regulations and has called on Bristol City Council to make immediate amendments, as well as reimburse drivers who have been penalised - in a comprehensive 150-page report.
He has subsequently dispatched a copy of the document to every councillor in the city. The council has previously justified the scheme, stating it erected 14 warning signs when it was only required to display two.
It asserted that the bus gate was established to enhance air quality and prioritise public transport.
