BAD DRIVERS could soon receive a fine not from the police but Wokingham Borough Council.
The local authority is applying for powers to issue penalty notices for moving traffic offences at 11 spots across the borough.
Motorists will be charged for illegal maneourves including making banned turns, driving the wrong way down a one-way street, and stopping in box junctions.
These offences are currently enforced by Thames Valley Police, but the government is progressively allowing the highways departments of councils to penalise drivers for these offences. Reading Borough Council is introducing this at box junctions in 15 locations.
Now Wokingham Borough Council is hoping to do the same.
It has submitted an application to the Department of Transport outlining which offences it wants to prosecute and where they are located in the borough.
They are:
Broad Street, Wokingham, at the junction with Rose Street: Banned right turn
Barkham Road rail crossing, Wokingham, at the junction with Oxford Road: Banned right turn
Station Road, Wokingham, at the junction with Station Approach: Banned right turn
Wellington Road, Wokingham: Ahead only
Gipsy Lane, Wokingham: Weight restriction
Murdoch Road, Wokingham: Keep left
Goatley Way, Wokingham: One-way street
Milton Road, Wokingham: Vehicles prohibited except buses
Easthampstead Road, Wokingham: Yellow box junction
Hyde End Lane, Spencers Wood, at the junction with Fullbrook Road: Buses only
Whitlock Avenue, Wokingham: Banned right turn
The decision to apply for moving traffic offence prosecution powers was approved by the council’s executive committee on Tuesday, March 21.
Explaining why the sites above were chosen for the application, councillor Paul Fishwick (Liberal Democrats, Winnersh), executive member for highways said: “These sites were identified and selected by a review of complaints received, officer knowledge and feedback from the local police.
“These 11 sites were showing the highest level of driver non-compliance.”
He added that the council’s highways department conducted surveys of a variety of locations before arriving at the list above, and that further sites can be considered for enforcement if the powers are granted.
If the application is successful, drivers will be served with a penalty charge notice (PCN) for breaches of £70, reduced to £35 if paid early, or rising to £105 afer a ‘charge certificate’ is served.
Like in Reading, drivers will receive one warning notice instead of a fine for six months after council enforcement begins at each site.
The application for the powers was submitted to Department for Transport by the deadline it set in February, with a decision being due in June.
