Traffic cameras don't think

By: Drivers.com staff

Date: Monday, 14. June 2010

The rest of the street was cordoned off for repairs, so British motorist Jacquelyn Woods took the only lane left available to her--the bus lane.

But the circumstances made no differences to the traffic camera. Woods was hit with a £50 fine (about US$90), which she protested. Messages of support flooded in after the fine got exposure in local media.

However, Woods wasn't the only victim. Several other motorists had the same experience and had to go to the trouble of fighting the fine. "The same thing happened to me," said Professor Isabel de Madariaga, emeritus professor of Russian studies at the University of London. "I wrote protesting a penalty of £50 when I had been forced into the bus lane by cones."

"I am a disabled pensioner," Madariaga added, "and the cameras do not photograph disabled parking permits nor do parking authorities make any reductions for the old or disabled."

Another motorist successfully appealed her fine and received a letter saying "It is evident from the footage of the contravention that the roadworks forced vehicles into the use of the bus lane in this circumstance."

The incidents show the down side of traffic camera law enforcement. The cameras do what they are told and can't take account of circumstances.

Fines can be appealed and reversed. However, there was no word from traffic management authorities that they intended to compensate the victims for the inconvenience they experienced and any costs incurred.

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