Skip to content

Penalty enforcement could net council £1m a year

Vikki IrwinSuffolk political reporter
News imageVikki Irwin/BBC The picture is of Dogs Head Street, so you can see a road with pavements either side and a bus stop on the left hand side. There is a pub and takeaways lining the street the right. There are two signs one on each side of the road saying cars and motor bikes can not enter. Entry is only for Buses taxis and authorised vehicles. Vikki Irwin/BBC
Dogs Head Street in Ipswich already has signage alerting drivers that only authorised vehicles can enter

Enforcing penalty notices on four streets could generate as much as £1m a year for a council, a budget report said.

Dogs Head Street, Upper Brook Street, Fore Street and Old Norwich Road in Ipswich are all bus lanes and were granted a so-called moving traffic contraventions designations order in November 2024.

Suffolk County Council revealed in a budget scrutiny meeting that camera technology and staff would be in place by September.

A spokesperson said any fines would be reinvested into the highways, and that any surpluses after covering the costs of operation "can only be used for the purposes set out in the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984".

Andrew Cook, executive director of growth, highways and infrastructure at the council, told the scrutiny meeting: "Without that in place, you can not legally ensure that you can fine people appropriately who are driving through those bus lanes and enforcement areas."

News imageVikki Irwin/BBC A woman and a man are standing next to each other. The man has his hand over the woman's shoulder. The woman is wearing a puffed jacket with a fur lined hood and is black. She is wearing glasses has gold earrings and necklace visible. The man is wearing a black cap also has a puffed jacket in black. He is also smiling at the camera. They are standing on the street and there is a red and orange background. Vikki Irwin/BBC
Katie James and Matty Scales think the signage is not clear enough on Dogs Head Street and Upper Brooks Street

There would be a £70 fine for vehicles caught in the unauthorised area, reduced to £35 if paid within 14 days.

Katie James and Matty Scales, who were taking shelter on Dogs Head Street, as the pavement is partially covered, said the fine was "a bit much".

"It will stop them though. The deterrent's there, so it's up to them if they want to drive through and get a fine," he said.

She added: "They do not make it clear with the signs and I didn't know, but assuming as a driver, as I don't drive, you read the road signs."

News imageVikki Irwin/BBC A man is standing on the street under a black umbrella, he is wearing a grey tweed coat and is carrying a back pack.Vikki Irwin/BBC
Matthew Cooke said it would be interesting to see if enforcement made a difference, as the current signs were ignored

A consultation on whether to apply for the enforcement order in 2023 had a "positive" response, according to the council's website.

Budget papers revealed it estimated £1m a year could be generated from fines for breaching the orders.

Matthew Cooke uses Dogs Head Street daily as a bus passenger.

"It is not enforced at all so far, so it'll be interesting to see if it'll make a difference," he said.

"With that amount of money I would like to think they'd make the signs a bit more obvious for people."

News imageVikki Irwin/BBC A picture of the corner of Dogs Head Street and Upper Brook Street. The traffic lights on red. Vikki Irwin/BBC
The traffic orders in Upper Brook Street and Dogs Head Street are currently not enforced

The council said other streets might be considered in the future and they expected to generate about £500,000 over the next financial year if they were up and running by September.

A council spokesperson said: "Any surpluses after covering the costs of operation can only be used for the purposes set out in the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. These provisions only allow any income raised to be used for the provision of environmental improvement, highway projects or the provision of public transport services."

Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.

Related Stories
Related Links
More from the BBC