Controversial bus gate makes council £1million in six months

Bristol City Council has made more than £1million in fines from a controversial bus gate in less than six months, new figures show. The council raked in the equivalent of about £7,400 per day from the bus gate on Cumberland Road in Bristol between January 1 and May 14.

So far, there have been 34,393 fines issued to drivers passing through it. The bus gate prioritises public transport over private vehicles by only allowing buses, cycles, taxis and motorcycles to enter the central areas of the city using Cumberland Road.

Penalty charge notices for driving through the bus gate cost £35, with some drivers blaming Google Maps for still showing that the fastest way to get into town is along Cumberland Road. According to figures released under a Freedom of Information request, income from the bus gate grossed 20 times more than any other in the city during the same period.

In total, the Cumberland Road bus gate has generated £1,010,335 in fines. The revenue made from fines across all 19 bus gates in the city was £1.39million in total, the BBC reports. The second-highest earning bus gate was Victoria Street (Bristol Bridge) at £59,105 and then Baldwin Street (Junction High Street) at £53,550.

These figures were released after a local man claimed the gate was 'unlawful' and 'defective'. Matt Sanders, a graphic designer from Windmill Hill in Bristol, has spent months compiling evidence about the bus gate.

He claims the signage goes against national regulations, and has urged Bristol City Council to make urgent changes, as well as refund drivers who have been fined - in a 150-page dossier. He has since sent a copy of the report to every councillor in the city.

The council previously defended the scheme and said it installed 14 warning signs when it was only obliged to display two. It said the bus gate was installed to improve air quality and give priority to public transport.

Bristol City Council said the bus gate on Cumberland Road was completely legal. “National government regulations only require councils to display two signs for a bus gate, but we have installed 14 signs in the area for this one alongside clear ‘bus gate’ road markings,” a spokesperson said.

“To give extra warning, an electronic sign was put in place for a month shortly after the bus gate was installed in September 2023. People who continued to drive through this bus gate in error were issued with warning letters as a reminder, before the first Penalty Charge Notices were issued four months later in January 2024.

“All vehicles can still travel eastbound on Cumberland Road up to the bus gate, which means that the SS Great Britain and other nearby Spike Island attractions can still be accessed from both directions.

“Motorists should always follow road signs, rather than sat navs/navigation devices. You would need to contact those route providers directly about their software. While councils are not required to install red road surfacing at bus gates, we have taken this step at the Cumberland Road bus gate to further enhance its visibility,” he added.