School traffic fine revoked for inadequate signage

Thousands of fines from a road safety scheme in Kent could be void after a tribunal overturned a penalty because of inadequate signage.

Medway Council's school streets scheme, which fines motorists for driving in designated roads near the start and end of the school day, saw Chris Lee fined for entering Richmond Road, in Gillingham, in September.

He appealed to the council, stating it was unclear that he was approaching the zone until it was too late. He eventually took his appeal to a tribunal which overturned the fine.

The council said it had successfully defended several appeals and remained confident that the signage at the site was adequate and compliant.

The council added that Mr Lee's appeal was the first in which an adjudicator found it against the authority on signage grounds.

"We will continue to review feedback, including comments on signage, to ensure the scheme operates effectively," a council spokesperson said.

Mr Lee, 56, said: "There's no way in the world anyone could remember all the locations of all the school zones, so people are reliant upon the signage, and it is not good enough.

"There's two signs warning about the zone, one right as it starts and another 200 yards [182m] up the street at a busy junction."

In total, 24,673 fines were issued across 12 school street zones in Medway since the first group was introduced in March 2024, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Of those, 2,706 were appealed by motorists, but only 330 were successfully overturned, and about £675,000 worth of penalties had been paid.

Medway Council previously defended the scheme as "making a big difference".

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