Bus Lane

[McGinty]

Hi there, I am seeking some advice regarding a PCN I received for driving in a bus lane. The bus lane in question is on Edinburgh Road,Jarrow. I have drove this route on a regular basis since 1991. As you will see in the attached link the bus lane was constructed a year or so ago and is reaping the coin in for South Tyneside Council. This was the first time that I have driven through it and it wasn't deliberate. My mother in law lives on the estate and we had just been visiting as her partner had been admitted to hospital and as I was chatting with my wife I realised half way through what I had done. There is no warning signage that there is a bus lane ahead. The only signs are at the start of the bus lane. Should there be any earlier sign warning of the impending bus lane? Thousands of motorists are being caught out so I think there must be something wrong for so many people to be doing this. Any advice please? https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news...ields-13902156

[McGinty]

Hi there, I am seeking some advice regarding a PCN I received for driving in a bus lane. The bus lane in question is on Edinburgh Road,Jarrow. I have drove this route on a regular basis since 1991. As you will see in the attached link the bus lane was constructed a year or so ago and is reaping the coin in for South Tyneside Council. This was the first time that I have driven through it and it wasn't deliberate. My mother in law lives on the estate and we had just been visiting as her partner had been admitted to hospital and as I was chatting with my wife I realised half way through what I had done. There is no warning signage that there is a bus lane ahead. The only signs are at the start of the bus lane. Should there be any earlier sign warning of the impending bus lane? Thousands of motorists are being caught out so I think there must be something wrong for so many people to be doing this. Any advice please? https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news...ields-13902156

This is another link showing the signs a bit better. https://www.shieldsgazette.com/news/...lear-1-8979653

[des8]

You probably haven't ha a response because it seems pretty clear cut.
IMO the signs are quite clear, and the article you reference also states that The Tribunal sees nothing wrong with the signage.

Since you have been driving the route for nearly 30 years, you probably do it on automatic.
Recently my local council slapped a 40 mph limit on a previous 60mph section of road, and I often (after 30 years of using that road daily) just do not see those restriction signs and get a nudge from she who must be obeyed

[Amethyst]

Ok no, I know nothing about bus lanes - other than we've had a couple bus lane tickets in Nottingham as they seem to filter you into them on purpose lol ... we just paid them.

If no one has answered for a bit just do a tag like
@ostell
@amethyst
etc ( try find who is relevant to the query first tho )
and they'll get a ping and will pop along when available.

I feel sorry for the demise of local newspapers and all that but seriously that shields website is horrific with ridiculous adverts and spam - I just closed it.

Just read Des's post - same thing happened to Jules - road that had been 60 for ever suddenly changed to 40 as a housing estate was built next to it ... autopilot ended up with a speed awareness course.

[McGinty]

Thanks. I have since learned that a 90 year old lady has had a successful appeal due to the signage being too small. I would appeal against it but I would some support. Is there anyone on here that you could recommend? The sign apparently has to be visible from 60 metres but there is also a double bend on the road which takes your eye away as you are concentrating more on possible cars coming towards you which may be in the middle of the road due to the layout.

[des8]

To defend yourself you could study The traffic Signs manual (https://www.gov.uk/government/public...c-signs-manual) but I wouldn't recommend it as light reading

alternately you might find this link useful http://pcnwp.blend-dns.co.uk/bus-lan...us-lane-signs/

[McGinty]

Thanks Des. In the link you sent the signage is a different colour to the actual one on Edinburgh. I would have thought all would have had to be the same colour. I took a spin up that way this morning to have a further look and there is a double bend on the road just before the signs making it difficult to spot from the required distance. To boot there was a van parked (perfectly legal) on the right side of the road obscuring early vision of the sign. The right turn diversion sign (which is also the bus lane warning sign) is approximately 20 metres from the the actual turn. There are no prior warning of this compulsory right turn. The turn takes you into a street called Stirling avenue which is a two way street but there is only room for one car as vehicles are parked on the pavement on both sides. The council claim that the improvements are for road safety reasons but I have travelled this route (A194) for years and never known or even heard of an accident there. There is more likely to be an accident on Stirling avenue due to the parking both sides of the pavement. Mc

[des8]

As I can't see the signs to which you refer (Google earth was filmed prior to the installation of the bus lane and I ain't coming up from West Wales just to view) I'll take your word that the signs are the wrong colour, but that does surprise me. In the links you provided all signs appear to conform to the regulations.
If you are set on challenging the penalty you will need to show the adjudicator the discrepancies.
The relevant part of Traffic Signs Manual is Chapter 3 Pages 130 - 141