Andy Burnham has hit out at a massive fine he received for speeding on a motorway.
The mayor of Greater Manchester was hit with a bill of almost £2,000 in March after he was caught doing 78mph on a section of motorway where the limit had been reduced to 40 on July 7 last year. He said at the time he became distracted when he realised the junction at which he usually exits the M62 had been closed and he had no idea the 'smart motorway' had reduced the limit to 40mph as he made his way home to Golborne in Wigan.
Today he again accepted he was 'going too fast' but admitted he had been 'aggrieved' by the size of the fine and the fact his licence had been endorsed with six rather than three penalty points, blaming the smart motorway system for 'trapping a lot of people unfairly' and saying: "I do think we need to take a look at these smart motorways."
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Court records show Mr Burnham's case was dealt with at Manchester and Salford Magistrates' Court on March 14. Appearing under his full name Andrew Murray Burnham, justices fined him £1,353 and ordered him to pay a victim surcharge of £541. He was also told to pay £90 court costs.
The total bill was £1,984. The mayor's licence was also endorsed with six penalty points.
Mr Burnham, 53, admitted a single speeding offence. The particulars of the charge say he was at the wheel of a five-door Vauxhall Insignia on the westbound carriageway of the M62 between junctions 11 and 12 travelling at 78mph at a time when a temporary 40mph speed limit was in force.
At the time he told the M.E.N. had been driving 'too fast' but had been caught out by the variable speed limit.
Today (Thursday) the Mr Burnham spoke out about the incident during a BBC Radio Manchester phone-in hosted by Mike Sweeney after a caller, John from Denton, said he had been 'a bit disappointed' when he read about the speeding offence.
Mr Burnham said: "I have held my hands up. Let me just tell you how it happened. This is a route I have taken all my life by the way, driving in and out of Manchester going home. I was going down the M62 and it was nine-ish in a night in the middle of the summer last year and I was going towards the bit where you peel off to the M6. And I then go north to the bit of Wigan where I live.
"And what happened, I'm just going to give people the full explanation so everybody knows and make your own judgments. What happened was the M6 was closed, you know when they close the junction at short notice later at night. But it hadn't been advertised at any point down the rest of the M62."
When Mr Sweeney said he had 'caught in that myself', the mayor continued: "It does happen, doesn't it? So I was in that situation and I had to re-route straight away in my mind, like am I going M6 south here because you could have gone that way or am I going to go M62 carry on to Winwick? I know this area well and I was just making that judgment, and in a split second I was right we'll go to Winwick.
"And then I had to look at the right hand side of the motorway because I had to then join the traffic that was still on the M62 and not peeling off and I had to go back into that traffic. So I was looking right and obviously you have to drive a bit faster to get into that traffic."
The mayor laughed as he said: "You're getting the full excuse here, but this is the truth."
When Mr Sweeney suggested 'some might call it waffling', Mr Burnham went on: "I'm just giving you what happened. And in that moment a flash goes off and [I] didn't get anything for five months, five months and 29 days until a letter arrives and it said 78 in a 40.
"And I was like 40?! What? 40? I wasn't on a local road. I was on the M62 near the M6. And I can only say to you John, and either you believe this or you don't believe it, but I can only say to you that is what happened.
"Was I going too fast? Yes. So no complaints. Should I probably have had a more normal fixed penalty? Probably, but I still say I had to speed up a bit to join the traffic on the far side of the motorway. I won't argue about that... Do I feel a little aggrieved about the smart motorway and the way it's operating? Well, definitely. I think the smart motorway on the M62 is trapping a lot of people unfairly.
"And honestly Mike, I believe that."
When the host put to the mayor 'you were doing 78 though', Mr Burnham said: "And I said right at the start I will accept I was going too fast and I will accept three points (on my licence). I've been asked about it. I've given a clear explanation. I didn't argue about it at the time. I've paid the fine."
The mayor then turned the tables and asked Mr Sweeney 'are smart motorways working properly and fairly?', and when the host said he didn't think he was allowed to give an opinion Mr Burnham asked listeners if they had had a similar experience and felt 'aggrieved as I do?'.
At the end of the show, Mr Burnham couldn't resist returning to the subject of smart motorways, telling the host he was 'sorry' about his earlier comments, repeating that he had accepted his fine but concluding: "I think we need to look at these smart motorways."
At the time he was fined, Mr Burnham told the Manchester Evening News: "On the night in question, I was travelling home on the M62 westbound in normal motorway conditions intending to come off at junction 10 for the M6.
"When I got close to the junction, it became clear that it had recently been closed and I had to re-route quickly back onto the main motorway.
"I was not aware of any variable speed limit in place on the smart motorway system at the time and only found out about it when the letter arrived in the post.
"If I had been aware, I would not have been travelling at that speed. That said, I acknowledge that, at 78mph, I was going too fast and accept the court’s decision."
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