Labour-run Lambeth rakes in up to £50m in fines since introducing controversial low-traffic neighbourhoods
25 February 2024, 17:14 | Updated: 25 February 2024, 17:22
Labour-run Lambeth Council has raked in up to £50m in fines since introducing controversial low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) in the south London borough.
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Lambeth's local authority handed out a record 392,341 penalty charge notices (PCNs) to drivers and motorcyclists who entered the LTN's closed roads since they were introduced in 2020.
If all fines were paid at the full £130 rate - the council would receive more than £50million over the four years since the controversial zones were brought in.
Read More: Transport Secretary says LTNs can 'gum-up' traffic and make people’s lives 'more difficult'
The figures obtained by the Telegraph using Freedom of Information requests show that no fines were issued to vehicles entering no-traffic zones between 2015 and 2018, a so-called Code 52M contravention.
But now, 392,349 Code 52M fines have been issued to motorists - boosting beleaguered council coffers.
The five-year figure will likely soon dwarf the 403,755 fines issued by Lambeth for bus lane contraventions over a nine year period.
Jim Bennett, of Lambeth LTN Watch which patrols LTNs, told The Telegraph: “Lambeth claims the receipts from LTN fines are ring-fenced in the transport budget
“But, there are no visible signs of any extra expenditure on the road network.
"In fact, there appears quite the opposite: potholes don’t get fixed, leaf mulch is still on the pavements and air quality monitors are conveniently failing when the results are too high.
“I would say that Lambeth council has built this revenue stream into its budget calculations, and needs to increase the number of LTNs to feed its growing habit.”
Low Traffic Neighbourhoods work by limiting traffic on certain roads with filter gates installed which, if breached, can result in a fine.
But anti-LTN campaigners have been slammed for vandalising the road measures, at a cost of £479,011 in London.
Hackney paid the highest bill, by far, for fixing and realigning cameras covering its LTNs last year.
One camera in Stoke Newington, installed in September 2021, has had to be replaced seven times.
