Norwich bus lane fines revealed as drivers caught by cameras

Those 9,877 drivers paid more than £250,000 into Norfolk County Council's coffers after flouting traffic rules - with one city centre camera snaring 40pc of those who were caught.

The bus gate at Brazen Gate in Norwich caught more than 4,000 drivers (Image: Denise Bradley)

That bus gate camera, at Brazen Gate/Grove Road, near Sainsbury's in Queens Road, caught 4,021 drivers despite only operating for two hours from 7.30am until 9.30am on weekdays.

Signs showing the bus gate at Brazen Gate in Norwich (Image: Denise Bradley)

The 4,021 drivers caught there paid the county council £108,349 of the £250,897 which was racked up in fines in total between October 2022 and October 2023.

However, fewer drivers were snapped going through that bus gate than the previous year, when 6,043 motorists fell foul of the camera.

The Brazen Gate bus gate is off limits to general traffic between 7.30am and 9.30am on weekdays (Image: Denise Bradley)

Bus lane penalty charge notices are £70, which are reduced to £35 if paid within 21 days.

The other city centre cameras which monitor bus gates and bus lanes are in St Stephens Street, Brazen Gate/Grove Road, Albion Way, Earlham Green Lane and Rampant Horse Street.

At the Albion Way bus gate, near Morrisons and the Riverside Leisure Centre, just over 2,000 drivers were caught, who paid out some £56,000.

Nearly 1,300 fines were issued to drivers who went through the Rampant Horse Street bus gate, paying just over £33,300.

General traffic is banned from Rampant Horse Street in Norwich (Image: Archant)

In St Stephens Street, just shy of 1,400 motorists were captured ignoring the signs banning general traffic, with almost £36,000 paid in penalties.

At the Albion Way bus gate, near Morrisons and the Riverside Leisure Centre, more than 2,210 drivers were caught, paying out nearly £60,000.

And at Earlham Green Lane in Bowthorpe, nearly 800 drivers were issued with fines, paying just over £11,000.

There is also a camera at Whitehorse Lane in Bixley, where 359 drivers were caught, paying £5,828 in penalty notices.

The figures were obtained using the Freedom Of Information Act.

READ MORE: Colman Road speed camera catches the most drivers in Norwich

Penalty charge notices can be cancelled for a number of reasons, such as technical errors in processing the notice or the driver having a valid reason for being in the bus gate.

While some fines were cancelled after representations, there were only 26 cases which made it to the actual appeal stage. Of those, 18 were successfully appealed.

The number of drivers breaking the rules - and the total paid in fines - were down on the previous 12 months, when 11.204 people were caught and £288,880 paid.

Bosses at Norfolk County Council said enforcement of bus lanes was important for safety, air quality and to improve the quality of life of people living in the area.

A spokeswoman said the Brazen Gate bus gate was designed to stop drivers from rat-running past people's homes.

She said it had been important to ban general traffic in St Stephens Street - the focus of a controversial £6.1m revamp - because it is one of Norwich's busiest shopping streets, with lots of people walking around.

She also said money raised from the fines is used to offset the operational cost of enforcement and anything above that was pumped into road maintenance, which would otherwise have to be funded by taxpayers.

Graham Plant, Norfolk County Council cabinet member for highways, infrastructure and transport. Pic: Jamie Honeywood (Image: Norfolk County Council)

Graham Plant, the county council's cabinet member for highways, infrastructure and transport, said: "Bus lanes and bus gates help us to manage the flow of vehicles on our road network which in turn improves air quality in the local area.

"By helping buses to avoid more congested sections of road, bus lanes help to improve journey times and reliability of the service – something which our bus service improvement plan is working hard to deliver for the residents of Norfolk.

"Income from penalty charge notices offsets the cost of running the service and any surplus is invested in highway maintenance and wider transport-related improvement schemes."

An enforcement camera will be introduced in Thorpe Road (Image: William Warnes)

And another city enforcement camera is due to be introduced.

A bus gate was installed in Thorpe Road in 2022 as part of a £2.5m revamp around Norwich Railway Station.

Up until now, a CCTV camera has been in operation and no fines have been issued.

But the county council confirmed it does have plans to install an enforcement camera there.