More than 500 drivers caught by Gateshead bus lane camera in three days

A camera on South Shore Road, on Gateshead Quayside, caught 529 drivers within three days but the council warned drivers will now be fined

More than 500 motorists have been caught red-handed driving in a bus-only lane in Gateshead in just three days.

They escaped without a fine, but now the authority has warned that lawbreakers will be hit in the pocket.

The bus-only lane on South Shore Road between Sage Gateshead and the Baltic was the subject of almost daily complaints about drivers ignoring the road signs to use it as an illegal rat run to get to and from Newcastle city centre.

Last week, after 20 years of motorists ignoring the restrictions, Gateshead Council switched on a bus-lane camera in a bid to put the brakes on motorists flouting the law.

And in the first three days of operation 529 drivers ignoring the restrictions were caught on camera.

However, they were the lucky ones, escaping with a written warning and not the usual fine.

Now, the gloves are off, and from today drivers caught using the bus lane can expect a £60 penalty to land on their doormats.

Anneliese Hutchinson, service director for development, transport and public protection at Gateshead Council, said: "The number of warnings we are issuing shows the sheer scale of the offending taking place at this location.

"Nobody using this stretch of road can be in any doubt that they are not permitted to use it - there's clear signage on both sides of the road, it's painted on the road itself, on the approach roads, and we even altered the road surface and installed a chicane to draw people's attention to this bus gate.

"Those who have been caught so far should consider themselves extremely fortunate that they have only got a letter- and change their behaviour immediately otherwise they will be fined."

The short bus lane on South Shore Road - called a bus gate - is the fourth bus-only lane in Gateshead to be monitored by a camera in a bid to discourage motorists from flouting the law.

Anyone caught by one of Gateshead's cameras is issued with a £60 penalty charge notice, or, if they decline to pay they can be taken to court.