Swindon Council is seeking to roll out further bus lane enforcement cameras in Swindon as a way to curb motorists driving on bus lanes. Together with income in excess of projected levels from existing bus lane enforcement cameras, it is expected that the penalty charges raised from this roll out will provide the Council with an additional £500K worth of income.
The Labour Group’s Shadow Lead for Transport, Councillor Jim Robbins, said:
“We support the further roll out of enforcement cameras on Swindon bus lanes but our support is not without some reservations.
We are supporting this because it is only fair to the responsible motorists that do not drive through bus lanes that we have a deterrent to prevent those irresponsible few who do. For a long time the Council provided no deterrent to stop motorists driving through bus lanes which led to unfairness and possible risk to public safety. Also most other councils are properly enforcing their bus lanes anyway so it will be a consistent approach to other areas.
My main reservation is that the Council needs to make sure it is clearly communicated to motorists what road lanes are reserved for buses and which aren’t. We’ve seen with Penzance Drive leading to the Outlet Village the confusion this has caused leading to responsible motorists being punished so we need to get that right. It's clear that drivers who are not from the town need accurate signage to ensure that they understand where the bus lane is”