Drivers were slapped with nearly £1 million in fines from just 36 yellow box junctions last year after local councils were granted new enforcement powers, according to shocking figures.
The RAC, which obtained the data through Freedom of Information (FoI) requests, warned that the “enormously high number” of penalty charge notices (PCNs) should “send alarm bells ringing in council offices”.
Yellow boxes are used to try and ensure smooth traffic flow at busy junctions.
Motorists are advised not to enter them unless their exit is clear or they are waiting to turn right.
Until the Government introduced new legislation in May 2022, London and Cardiff were the only parts of the UK where drivers could be fined for yellow box offences. This law now allows all councils across England to apply for enforcement powers.
Data provided by English councils in response to FoI requests by the RAC revealed that 36 yellow boxes outside London and Cardiff were enforced last year.
This resulted in a staggering total of 32,748 PCNs being issued, with drivers shelling out £998,640.
PCNs are typically set at £70, but this can be reduced to £35 if paid within 21 days.
The RAC’s analysis discovered that Manchester City Council was the biggest issuer of PCNs, handing out 13,130 in relation to six junctions.
This raked in £446,706, which accounted for nearly half of all yellow box-related revenue outside London and Cardiff.
Kent’s Medway Council came in second, raising £145,162 after doling out 4,433 PCNs for the five yellow boxes it enforced.
The top earner was Buckinghamshire Council, bagging £139,798 from 3,618 fines, but Guildford’s Dennis Roundabout took the crown for single junction with a staggering £81,445 from 4,250 PCNs. On the flip side, Gloucestershire County Council only nabbed £945 from 30 yellow box fines and Leeds City Council secured just £605 from handing out 50 penalties.
Interestingly, Medway Council saw an astonishing 87% success rate in appeals against yellow box fines, suggesting that not all fines are set in stone.
RAC senior policy officer Rod Dennis said a yellow box which generates a small number of fines indicates it is “working as it should”, which must be the ambition for councils rather than using them as a “revenue-raising opportunity”.
He went on: “Very few people set out to deliberately flout the rules and get fined.
“The large number of penalties being dished out over a small number of locations and in a short space of time should send alarm bells ringing in council offices.
“It’s vital box junctions are used in the correct places and are only as big as absolutely necessary.
“They must be fairly set up so that drivers don’t find themselves stranded through no fault of their own.”
In an extensive report by RAC-commissioned chartered engineer Sam Wright, he dissected the data from the 100 most prolific revenue-generating boxes in London and Cardiff during 2019.
A report published last year revealed that 98 of the boxes were larger than necessary for their role in preventing queuing vehicles from blocking the path of crossing traffic. According to the research, the average box was 50% bigger than needed.
The Local Government Association, Manchester City Council, Medway Council and Buckinghamshire Council have all been approached for a comment.
