Car drivers using bus lane risk £60 penalty

Drivers caught using bus lanes in Staffordshire could be fined up to £60 as a new crackdown is launched.

Police are currently responsible for monitoring bus lanes in the county but council bosses want to take over enforcement.

It comes as a new bus lane is built as part of the i54 business park near Wolverhampton. The authority is looking to set up cameras there to catch motorists – and will now have the power to do the same across the county.

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The authority has agreed to start enforcement at bus lanes through Staffordshire and will look at investing more cash into officers and equipment in the coming months. Bosses say they do not know how much cash fines will bring in.

They want to encourage more people to use buses – which in turn would bring in more cash to fund better public transport services.

The bus lane near the i54 site is being set up at Innovation Drive near the Wobaston Road junction and will cost £102,000.

Access from Wobaston Road will then be limited to buses, cycles, pedestrians and motorcycles with the majority of vehicles entering and leaving the site via the new motorway junction or linked slip roads.

Cyclists and motorbikes will also be able to use the new lane – and this could be introduced at other locations.

A report to the council states: "Income from penalty charge notices will contribute towards the cost of enforcement. However at this stage the expected level of non-compliance is unknown but will be closely monitored."

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Council transport chief Mark Winnington said: "We want people to use buses more often and to cycle more. It's a matter of trying to get people out of their cars and to use more sustainable methods of transport.

"There is a cost implication to this too, as bus fare prices could come down if more people use them and hopefully then we will see better standards of buses and better services."

He added: "We are looking around the county at the moment at possible locations to start introducing enforcement in the future though no decisions have been made yet."

Philip Atkins, leader of Staffordshire County Council, Councillor Roger Lawrence, leader of Wolverhampton City Council, and Councillor Brian Edwards, leader of South Staffordshire Council, have welcomed the bus lane at the i54.

In a joint statement they said: "These new road arrangements are part of the planning conditions for the site, and when they come into effect later this year, will ensure i54 is one of the best business sites in the West Midlands, while safeguarding local businesses and people from the extra traffic created.

"We are already working with the four companies on site, and with partners to explain how employees, suppliers and visitors get to i54."