Council faces £300k payout to motorists as fined driver points out bus lane loophole

pitta_2

20th April 2009

"COUNCIL bosses could end up paying back tens of thousands of pounds of fines after a driver turned loophole-lawyer to get a bus lane penalty quashed.:j

Derek Brocklehurst, 38, refused to pay the £30 on the grounds that the sign was wrong.

The blue-circle sign is supposed to state that only buses, cyclists and black cabs can use the lane - but the word 'only' was missing.:T

Manchester council admitted there had been a mistake and later corrected the sign.

But Mr Brocklehurst's success could now open the floodgates for other drivers to challenge fines they have already paid after being caught using the lane, outside Victoria railway station." :beer:

Find this story at:

The Manchester Evening News Website

and:

The Daily Mail Website

(Sorry, I can't post links, this is my first ever thread even though I have used the MSE site for ages)

I was really hoping somebody on MSE forum could point me in the direction of the template Mr Brocklehurst mentions making available online in the M.E.N. article, to send to MCC as I am one of the 10,000+ fined after not reading a non-existent sign.

I have already paid my fine, I committed the offence before the sign was corrected in March 2009, I'm hoping to get a refund.


I have looked EVERYWHERE with no luck.

Thanks for reading, I really hope someone can help me out.:money:

sarahg1969

I think Mr Brocklehurst might be a member on the pepipoo website, so if you post on there, you may get some more assistance.

In any event, you can just write a simple letter, referring to the Brocklehurst case, and asking for a refund. I'm pretty sure they'll know which case you mean!

pitta_2

Thanks for your reply,

No luck tracking down Mr Brocklehurst on pepipoo forums yet re: letter template but thanks anyway.:beer:


But someone has pointed out to me that if you streetview googlemaps 'station approach, victoria station, manchester', then move along the road outside the station and turn the camera to face the junction to the urbis you can quite plainly see the offending sign, minus the all important 'only'.:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

But I can't work out how to date the googlestreetview image, as this would help my case. (MCC are now saying that the sign was originallly correct, that somebody must have removed the 'only' after they put up the correct sign, at an unknown date:mad::mad::mad::mad:)

Anybody know how to get a date on a streetview image? :money:

Thanks in advance.:T

peter_the_piper

No idea on Streetview but just follow Sarah's advice and you should be ok.