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Drove into bus lane by mistake


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Old 27-12-2016, 22:58
Ovalteenie
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Nice strawman there, admitting you can't you tackle my argument?
We're all human and some road designs are better than others and some are easy to get wrong if driving in an unfamiliar town, at night, in the rain etc
Thanks

The weather was awful yesterday with strong winds and rain and I was concentrating more on puddles and traffic and I knew I wanted to go left and just drove straight into the lane opening up to the left before realising it was a bus lane.

I think local knowledge does make a huge difference when driving as you don't worry about getting lost and more able to ignore the sat nav, and know where the pitfalls are. Back in the town where I live I go in a completely different route to what the sat nav advises, and also at a junction when it says "turn right" I know it should actually be straight ahead.
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Old 28-12-2016, 06:57
killjoy
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Came across a couple of really annoying bus lanes yesterday. Stop at the traffic lights and there are 2 lanes marked for straight ahead and was in the left hand one, lights change and I went forward only to find that 6 ft over the junction there was a bus lane which meant I had to sit there until the right hand lane was clear of traffic and I could change lane.
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Old 28-12-2016, 08:56
TheEricPollard
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In Bradford they once rerouted all the traffic down a bus lane when there was a 10k on and sent everyone a £30 fine. Good old Bradford.
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Old 28-12-2016, 10:57
SaturnV
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Claiming something as a mistake hardly constitutes an argument.
And if that is your argument, where do you draw the line as to which offences you feel are mitigated.
Pointing out that a simple understandable harmless error should be more tolerated and less harshly punished is a perfectly good argument.
All your other strawman examples are different topics and will each have their own subtleties that aren't relevant to badly designed and cynically managed bus lanes.
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Old 28-12-2016, 11:41
Ovalteenie
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Went past the scene of crime this morning and there was a car in the bus lane behind a bus there. I sympathised but am feeling a bit better to know that it's not just me being an idiot

I'm guessing the driver is another visitor to the city - as I mentioned there are a number of large hotels in the vicinity - and more likely to make the mistake.
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Old 28-12-2016, 11:48
Ovalteenie
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Pointing out that a simple understandable harmless error should be more tolerated and less harshly punished is a perfectly good argument.
All your other strawman examples are different topics and will each have their own subtleties that aren't relevant to badly designed and cynically managed bus lanes.
Thank you SaturnV

No one deliberately mean to drive into a bus lane - it's a misjudgment, unfamiliarity with the road layout, failure to anticipate and pay attention, trapped in the wrong lane committing to enter a bus lane... It's a navigational error... no one has been hurt...

I mean, when councils enforce some bus lanes 24/7 when there aren't 24/7 bus services... it smacks of cynical revenue-raising to fill in council budget holes...
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Old 28-12-2016, 12:20
Trulytrue
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Thank you SaturnV

No one deliberately mean to drive into a bus lane - it's a misjudgment, unfamiliarity with the road layout, failure to anticipate and pay attention, trapped in the wrong lane committing to enter a bus lane... It's a navigational error... no one has been hurt...

I mean, when councils enforce some bus lanes 24/7 when there aren't 24/7 bus services... it smacks of cynical revenue-raising to fill in council budget holes...
I have been driving for a very long time and anyone who says they have never got confused when driving in a strange place where the rules might be different are lying as far as I am concerned.

I live in a county that is pretty fair with traffic . But the two adjoining counties are a nightmare and most people can see its for revenue.. Any county Having a speed camera at the bottom of a hill coming off a motorway knows they will be getting a good deal of cash flowing their way. My country does not have many speed cameras or bus lanes only where they are really needed. and the traffic here is so much less stressful than the two other counties,

More and more rules, more and more signs, temporary SIGNS, ROADWORKS ADVERTISING (sorry for caps) boards, then you have the flashing lights , the new bright car lights, ( that I believe to be the cause of many deaths and should be banned and i'm not a person who thinks much should be banned.) More and more traffic and even though apparently the driving test is now stricter less and less people are doing what was habit only a few years ago. like lane discipline and indicating etc.
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Old 28-12-2016, 13:16
skinj
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Years ago when the Congestion charge came in to place in London I was there for a couple of days. A gig in Brixton, followed the next day by a Football match at Wembley. To fill the time between we drove to Camden for a look around the shops.
On route there were signs everywhere ref the congestion zone and as I was paying more attention to the actual traffic & dangers of the road, I wasn't sure if I'd strayed in to the zone or not.
I called the helpline to ask (as I know the scheme is controlled by number Plate recognition) if had to pay or not. The response was ridiculous. They said that they could not tell me as the data was not available immediately and it normally takes about 3/4 weeks for the info to come through. The charge for the congestion zone doubled (from memory) if it was not paid with in 48hrs. I ended up paying the fee simply to avoid paying double if I had strayed in, which they couldn't tell me for 3 weeks.
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Old 28-12-2016, 14:21
Jimmy Connors
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Thank you SaturnV

No one deliberately mean to drive into a bus lane - it's a misjudgment, unfamiliarity with the road layout, failure to anticipate and pay attention, trapped in the wrong lane committing to enter a bus lane... It's a navigational error... no one has been hurt...

I mean, when councils enforce some bus lanes 24/7 when there aren't 24/7 bus services... it smacks of cynical revenue-raising to fill in council budget holes...
Was the bus lane you used 'live' at the time? Have you had a look on Google street view to see if the bus lane was 'live'?
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Old 28-12-2016, 15:00
SaturnV
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Was the bus lane you used 'live' at the time? Have you had a look on Google street view to see if the bus lane was 'live'?
That's another issue with them. Boards with qualifying times which need to be read and digested while driving as carefully as possible as there will (ironically) be bus users crossing the road you need to watch out for.
An example of the cynicism is that Liverpool have spent money on installing and managing the cameras but haven't bothered to remove the redundant and confusing road markings on the defunct lanes.
People see the red tarmac and solid white line but no qualifying plates so avoid the lanes often switching quickly just in case they get hammered for a trivial offence.
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Old 28-12-2016, 15:59
swaydog
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I didnt suggest there is. How do you suggest they go about this?
You mentioned the road colouring as though it was relevent, so I just pointed out that it's isn't
I suggest that they go back and look to see if there are both a sign stating it's a bus lane and that it is also written on the road that it is a bus lane at the start/restart of the bus lane after the junction in question.
They can also check that the pre bus lane dotted line is no more than 1:10 taper and that there's the requisite deflection arrows preceding it.

Page 101 explains it
https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...chapter-05.pdf

Perhaps the op can tell us where the junction is so we can check it ourselves
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Old 28-12-2016, 16:00
paulschapman
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Driving in unfamiliar city centre yesterday, satnav told me to bear left and I drove into a camera monitored bus lane by mistake and realised too late and had no option but to carry on. There were no buses or any other traffic around at the time. Will I definitely get a penalty fine in the post, or is there an amnesty on Christmas/Boxing Day? Also I understand it's not a criminal offence so just a fine not penalty points?
I had to drive into a bus lane because some idiot decided to stop in the middle of the road - I suppose I could have driven into the oncoming traffic but got stung for over £120. I and a number of people went around on his inside.

As to your question, wait and see.
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Old 28-12-2016, 16:02
Pitman
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I caught a policemen in a yellow box again this morning, policemen and bus drivers are exempt from these essential road laws
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Old 28-12-2016, 16:10
Croctacus
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Was the bus lane you used 'live' at the time? Have you had a look on Google street view to see if the bus lane was 'live'?
I've asked this twice already, as have a couple of others. We've all been ignored.
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Old 28-12-2016, 16:13
Pitman
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I've asked this twice already, as have a couple of others. We've all been ignored.
OP said they couldn't see any hours, which would make it a 24/7 one
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Old 28-12-2016, 16:20
jonmorris
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I had a look today and there is a ?automated camera (the ones with multiple round holes) monitoring the bus lane. There is signage but in mitigation the weather was awful yesterday and i wasn't paying enough attention. There was a BMW behind me in the bus lane, I think he must have been unfamiliar and following me & I led him astray too!
BMWs are allowed in bus lanes surely?
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Old 28-12-2016, 16:49
Ovalteenie
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I've asked this twice already, as have a couple of others. We've all been ignored.
Sorry I didn't mean to... what does it mean, "live"?

It's got the blue signs saying bus and cycle "only". There are no times so I assume it's 24/7.

But there isn't a 24/7 bus service.
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Old 28-12-2016, 16:51
Ovalteenie
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BMWs are allowed in bus lanes surely?

Mine is is a mere Honda
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Old 28-12-2016, 17:42
RobinOfLoxley
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Cycles are 24/7
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Old 28-12-2016, 17:57
Orangecrab
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I wonder what happens if you're driving a hire car... does the fine get sent to the car hire company and would they pass it on to you?
That's precisely what would happen.
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Old 28-12-2016, 18:10
Richard46
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Not all of them. We have some time restricted ones near here. Crazy.
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Old 28-12-2016, 18:24
RobinOfLoxley
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I meant people cycling are 24/7/365 not the lanes.

If the OP was infringing on a Cycle and Bus Lane with no hours specified, it's only half a mitiigation to moan that the buses weren't running.
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Old 28-12-2016, 18:34
Pitman
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I meant people cycling are 24/7/365 not the lanes.

If the OP was infringing on a Cycle and Bus Lane with no hours specified, it's only half a mitiigation to moan that the buses weren't running.
there is zero mitigation, it was 3pm, unless all the local bus drivers stop at 3pm for a cup of tea
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Old 28-12-2016, 19:39
Evo102
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there is zero mitigation, it was 3pm, unless all the local bus drivers stop at 3pm for a cup of tea
It was Boxing Day, it might come as a surprise to you that in many areas outside of London and other large metropolitan areas there are no bus services on that particular Bank Holiday.
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Old 28-12-2016, 20:59
TobiasBudzynski
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Driving in unfamiliar city centre yesterday, satnav told me to bear left and I drove into a camera monitored bus lane by mistake and realised too late and had no option but to carry on. There were no buses or any other traffic around at the time. Will I definitely get a penalty fine in the post, or is there an amnesty on Christmas/Boxing Day? Also I understand it's not a criminal offence so just a fine not penalty points?
Did it happen in Hull by any chance?
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