‘Unsuspecting motorists’ have been hit with more than 27,000 fines since enforcement began at a controversial town centre ‘bus gate’. The ‘incredible’ number of Penalty Charge Notices issued by Stockport council has been revealed following a Freedom of Information Request by one of the drivers caught out at the Heaton Lane Bus Gate.
It covers a year from when fines were first issued in April 2022 to the end of March this year. General traffic was banned from the stretch of Heaton Lane running between the A6 Wellington Road North and Travis Brow last February with only buses, cyclists and licensed taxis now allowed through.
Bosses say this is part of the ‘ongoing multi-million-pound transformation' of the town’s new transport Interchange and makes Heaton Lane a more attractive walking and cycling corridor. Fines are issued at £60 - but reduced to £30 if paid within a fortnight - taking the potential haul from the 27,552 fines upwards of £1.6m.
