New data reveals how much money Northampton council has received each month in bus lane fines

The council has received half-a-million-pounds since a controversial bus lane camera went live back in February - let's take a look at the monthly breakdown of the numbers.

West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) has provided this newspaper with a monthly breakdown of the Weedon Road/St James' Road bus lane figures, which includes the amount of penalty charge notices issued and the amount of payments received from them.

The 24/7 bus lane camera went live on February 15 and has since been at the centre of controversy, particularly because it is located where motorists have been undertaking cars turning right into Westbridge Garage for decades to ease congestion.

Motorists who venture into the forbidden zone are now slapped with a £60 fine reduced to £30 if paid within 14 days. If the initial payment is missed the charge then increases to £90, and then bailiff and court action.

The following figures show how many PCNs were issued by the council and how much it has received in PCN payments over an eight-month period - note, February stats are between the 15th and 28th, and October stats are between the first and 18th.

St James' Road bus lane figures

• February - 2,571 PCNs - £94,329.79

• March - 3,906 PCNs - £120,214.29

• April - 2,909 PCNs - £79,828

• May - 1.954 PCNs - £52,334

• June - 1,536 PCNs - £42,772

• July - 1,412 PCNs - £37,950

• August - 1,196 PCNs - £30,248

• September - 1,771 PCNs - £34,740

• October - 674 PCNs - £8,010

In total, 17,929 PCNs have been issued between February 15 and October 18, with the council receiving a whopping £500,426 in that time. WNC has previously said that the money goes back into 'council facilities'.

The figures show that cases rocketed in the first two months between February and March, which suggests many motorists were still unfamiliar with the camera.

If February had a full month of data then it was on target to surpass March's high figures.

The figures also show that over time the number of offenders has decreased except for a small increase in September.

Take a look at the attached graphics for a better understanding of the monthly breakdowns.

The bus lane is currently up for review following the furore of the last eight months.

A survey is currently live for all Northampton residents to take part in and decide the future of both the bus lane and its camera. The council has not included a 'remove the camera' option. Instead there is an 'other' option where people can choose a different outcome than the other three listed.

The four options include:

• Reduce the enforcement hours to a minimum period from 7.30am to 9.30am

• Reduce the enforcement hours to 7am to 7pm

• Leave the enforcement hours as they currently operate.

• Other

Click HERE to complete the three-question survey which takes just minutes.