Council has no power to hand out Lendal Bridge fines

The Chief Executive of York City Council says the fines issued to drivers who go over Lendal Bridge are legal.

Over 50,000 drivers had been fined, totalling around £1 million for using Lendal and Coppergate bridges.

However the Traffic Adjudicator says City of York Council had no power to issue the notices.

Nigel Rhodes was the first driver to successfully appeal against a ticket for contravening traffic restrictions on Coppergate.

York City Council's Chief Executive said: "Having received independent legal advice from a leading legal expert in this field we are confident we are operating both Lendal Bridge and Coppergate schemes within the law.

“We also take assurances from Oxford, who contested with a similar appeal with the Traffic Penalty Tribunal and successfully won."

The Traffic Adjudicator told Calendar today that his ruling stands, pending any appeal from the Council.

A driver from York who won a case against new traffic restrictions in the city says he hopes thousands of other drivers will get their money back.

Nigel Rhodes is the first driver to successfully appeal against getting a ticket for breaching a controversial daytime driving ban.

More than 50,000 motorists have been been caught using Lendal Bridge and Coppergate when they shouldn't.

The council says it will continue to issue the fines until it has taken legal advice of its own. Chris Kiddey reports.

The driver who challenged the penalty imposed by the City of York Council after he drove along Coppergate says he is delighted that his appeal was upheld.

The decision has called in to question more than a million pounds worth of fines imposed by the authority to motorists for using the route, as well as crossing Lendal Bridge.

The Traffic Adjudicator says the council had no authority to fine drivers, but the council have warned drivers the restrictions and fines will remain in place.

Nigel Rhodes says he is pleased with the outcome of his case.

A successful legal appeal against a traffic fine has brought more than a million pounds worth of similar penalties into question.

Nigel Rhodes is the first driver to successfully appeal against a ticket for contravening traffic restrictions on Coppergate.

More than fifty thousand drivers have so far been fined for using Coppergate and Lendal Bridge during the daytime.

But the Traffic Adjudicator now says City of York Council had no power to issue the notice to Mr Rhodes.

The Council says it is seeking legal advice over the ruling and that restrictions remain in place, meaning drivers could still be fined.

More than a million pounds of motoring fines have been brought into question after York council was told it had no power to impose them on drivers in the city.

The City's Council has come under fire over the closure of Lendal Bridge to cars during the day.

Now the Government has said the restrictions are wrong. From York, Lisa Adlam reports

A York MP has welcomed a ruling that City of York Council does not have the power to issue fines for crossing Lendal Bridge.

Julian Sturdy, the MP for York Outer, has said it is a “a victory for common sense”.

A ruling by the Government's Traffic Adjudicator has found that City of York Council has no powers to fine drivers for crossing Lendal Bridge.

At a Traffic Penalty Tribunal it was concluded that the scheme, which was put in place last year, to stop drivers crossing the bridge during the day, and another one on Coppergate are not valid as the road cannot be described as a 'bus lane'.

The council has made at least £1.3 million from fines on Lendal Bridge alone.