CAMERAS brought in to record drivers breaching a ban on left turns at a busy Fishponds junction have caught more than 2,400 drivers in the first four months of enforcement.
It means around 20 drivers every day have been given a fine of between £35 and £105 for making a left turn from Fishponds Road into Hockey’s Lane.
The restriction at the junction (pictured above) was first brought in nearly 15 years ago, as part of work to install the bus lane on Fishponds Road.
But since then many drivers have ignored the signs and made illegal turns across the pedestrian crossing at the entrance to Hockey’s Lane, next to the Farrier’s Arms, while the light is green.
Since 2011 there have been repeated reports of near-misses and demands for action at the junction, including a petition calling for legal left turns to be reinstated, and a call for traffic in all directions to be stopped while pedestrian crossings are at green.
The council applied for powers to use cameras to enforce fines at the junction, between Morrisons and Aldi, in 2022 and was granted them by the Department for Transport the following year.
Traffic cameras were installed with warning signs last year, and their use to record drivers making the banned turn started in March.
For the first six months, any driver ignoring the ban was sent a warning letter for a first offence and only fined if they breached it again.
The grace period ended on September 18, and from then anyone breaking the rule has automatically been sent a penalty charge notice.
A council spokesperson confirmed that in the four months to January 18, a total of 2,428 penalty charge notices were issued at the Hockey’s Lane junction.
The spokesperson said each case is “reviewed by a civil enforcement officer” before the notice is issued.
50% discount
Drivers are told to pay £70 within 28 days, with a 50% discount for paying it within 21 days.
Those who do not pay within 28 days see the charge rise to £105.
The left-turn from Fishponds Road is the only direction where entry into Hockey’s Lane is banned: drivers heading from Station Avenue South or making a right turn from Fishponds Road can still enter the road: their green light comes when the pedestrian crossing is at red.
The no-left turn is signposted on the traffic lights at the junction, where the green light is an ‘ahead-only’ arrow.
A new sign that also warns of camera enforcement was put up last year.
A forward arrow and “ahead only” message is painted on the road surface, although a large painted no left turn sign has been almost completely worn out and is partly obscured by barriers erected to protect pedestrians after hoardings blocking the pavement were put up outside the Farriers Arms by contractors working for owners Morrisons last autumn.
‘A longstanding problem’
Transport and connectivity committee chair Councillor Ed Plowden said: “The restrictions at Hockey’s Lane support the free flow of traffic on the main road and help pedestrians to cross safely.
“Drivers who ignore the rules risk putting themselves and others in danger and may be penalised.
“Clear signage and road markings are in place, and legal notices were published once authorisation was received from the Department for Transport to use Moving Traffic Enforcement powers at this location.
“It is precisely because this has been such a longstanding problem that we have introduced camera enforcement here, one of six sites in the city where this approach is being piloted.”