the Council warn; obey the rules or take a high fine!
From now on motorists who drive the wrong way down one-way streets or
who ignore signs banning left or right turns could find themselves on
the wrong end of a £100 fine.
The warning comes as the town hall takes over the enforcement of some
traffic offences from the police.
Wandsworth is one of six London boroughs chosen to pilot new enforcement
powers contained in the London Local Authorities Act 2003. The powers
are also being used by Transport for London on all red routes in the capital.
The borough's comprehensive network of CCTV cameras will be used to provide
film evidence of drivers who flout these traffic laws. Mobile cameras
will also be used at hotspots where motorists are known to regularly ignore
road signs.
Although some other boroughs are considering using council traffic wardens
to enforce the new powers, in Wandsworth only video evidence will be used.
Cabinet member for regeneration and transport Cllr Guy Senior said: "Motorists
who flagrantly disobey traffic laws are a menace to themselves and other
road users. They are also one of the main contributors to traffic hold-ups.
"Some people think it's perfectly acceptable to take a short cut
by driving a hundred yards or so the wrong way down a one-way street.
But these motorists pose an enormous risk to pedestrians, especially children,
who would not think to look the other way when crossing the road.
"This kind of irresponsible driving also hugely increases the risk
of a serious head-on collision with another vehicle. Similarly drivers
who disregard the rules outlawing left or right turns pose a serious risk
to pedestrians, who would have no reason to expect a car heading towards
them from the wrong direction. I am aware of a number of incidents in
recent years when people have been struck on pedestrian crossings by drivers
who have ignored these rules and suddenly appeared from nowhere.
"And drivers who decide that it's okay to make an illegal right turn
often hold up traffic behind them, thus adding to congestion, traffic
chaos and the general stress of driving in the city.
"We will be using our CCTV cameras, including covert mobile ones,
to catch these irresponsible drivers. The first they will know about it
is when they receive a £100 fine through the post a few days later.
"And because we will have evidence of their transgression on video
tape they will have little chance of escaping or arguing that it was someone
else's car. The best thing these drivers can do if they want to avoid
being caught is to obey the highway code at all times and stop ignoring
the laws of the road."
Drivers who receive a fine and elect to pay it within 14 days will be
eligible to pay a discounted amount of £50.
September 2, 2004
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