Hundreds of drivers to get refund for driving through notorious bus gate after government error

[dutchman]

If she has lied, she must go.

But if they all did that there'd be no councillors left!

[dutchman]

Campaigner offers to pay for Coventry council to write to those stung in bus gate fine fiasco

A CAMPAIGNER has offered to dip into his own pocket to ensure all those wrongly fined after driving through city bus gates will get their money back.

Richard Heneghan has offered to pay for the council to notify all motorists who paid their fines for driving through Park Road, Greyfriars Green and Gosford Streetbus gates between December 2015 and April 2016 by means other than bank transfer or credit/debit card payment.

Mr Heneghan’s email to the Observer, announcing his offer to pay for the council to write individually to affected residents, read: “I hereby request that Coventry Observer publicise the fact that I am personally willing to bear the costs of Coventry City Council making contact with anyone who did not pay by card / bank transfer/ any other means which could be automatically refunded.

“The conditions of the above are as follows:

“a) Coventry City Council contractually agree that upon receipt of the funds (after invoicing), they automatically refund everyone whom paid by methods which can be automatically refunded (Credit / Debit card, bank transfer etc.).

“b) Coventry City Council disclose the TRUE figure of the members of the public who cannot be automatically refunded.

“c) Coventry City Council disclose the contracted unit rate at which they are invoiced for 2nd mail, pre-paid / franked mail.

“This would be an adequate method to make contact with the remaining members of the public.

“I believe the Council outsource the process but if not, I am happy to be corrected.”

Mr Heneghan said: “Coventry City Council has advised that the sole reason it refuses to automatically refund motorists is that it would be seen as showing a prejudicial distinction between those paying by card / bank transfer and those paying by cash/cheque etc.

“Whilst I find the Council’s position illogical at best, I am willing to consider personally bearing the costs of the council writing to those whom did not pay by methods which can be automatically refunded.

“However, this is offered on the condition that the Council agree to automatically refund the motorists whom paid by card / bank transfer.”

[rebbonk]

Our council is not honourable, they intend to hang on to as much of their illegally obtained booty as they can.

It'll be interesting to see how they squirm with this offer.

[dutchman]

Council to consider campaigner's offer to pay for letters to bus gate fine victims

COVENTRY council is considering an offer from a member of the public to foot the bill of writing to those wrongly fined after driving through city bus gates.

A meeting will be held next week to discuss whether to accept campaigner Richard Heneghan’s offer to pay for the council to notify all motorists who paid their fines for driving through Park Road, Greyfriars Green and Gosford Streetbus gates between December 2015 and April 2016 by means other than bank transfer or credit/debit card payment.

His offer, made in December, followed repeated refusals from the Labour-run council to write to each driver individually to notify them of their right to a refund of their £30 fine (or £60 if they did not pay it within 14 days).

Coun Jayne Innes, cabinet member for city services, has argued she could not justify using tax payers’ money to right to the affected motorists.

But Mr Heneghan believes the council is dragging its feet and has offered to dip into his own pocket to fund letters being sent to all drivers who paid by non-electric means, as long as the council automatically refunded drivers who had paid by bank transfer or credit/debit card payments.

To date, only £18,000 of the £398,460 of fines has been returned to motorists who drove through the bus gates when the signs at Park Road, Greyfriars Green and Gosford Street had been de-authorised by, the council claims, a ‘typo’ in a letter from the Department for Transport.

[dutchman]

Coventry council rejects campaigner's offer to help cover costs of bus gate fine victims

COVENTRY council has rejected a campaigner’s offer to foot the bill of writing to those wrongly fined after driving through city bus gates.

Road safety campaigner Richard Heneghan had offered to dip into his own pocket and cover the postage costs of the council notifying all motorists who paid their fines for driving through Park Road, Greyfriars Green and Gosford Streetbus gates between December 2015 and April 2016 by means other than bank transfer or credit/debit card payment.

His offer, made in December, followed repeated refusals from the Labour-run council to write to each driver individually to notify them of their right to a refund of their £30 fine (or £60 if they did not pay it within 14 days).

But following a meeting, the council has rejected his offer and said they will not automatically issue a refund to affected drivers.

Instead they will continue to only reimburse those who took it upon themselves to apply directly to the council in writing to ask for their money back.

A council spokesperson said: “This offer has been well publicised in the local media over many months and we have also promoted it on our website.

“We will also be asking the Department for Transport to cover the costs of any refunds we make.”

But Mr Heneghan said he was concerned the council was simply dragging its feet and trying to mitigate the amount of refunds it had to pay.

He added: “Given that cabinet member Coun Jayne Innes has repeatedly hidden behind the cost of contacting those whom can’t be automatically refunded, I felt compelled to offer to cover the costs myself.

“It would now appear that the matter of costs was just a veiled attempt at retaining the public’s hard earned funds.

“The council have on occasion claimed to be acting in good faith.

“However, bad decisions made in good faith are still bad decisions.

“I am confident that the public will see this response for what it is; a morally questionable and evasive approach which seems to only work to the detriment of the public”

[rebbonk]

We have a totally dishonest and morally bankrupt council.

In truth, I'm not in the least surprised that they turned down the offer, they have no intention of handing back any money if they can avoid it.

[Melisandre]

Richard has show them for what they really are thats for sure and in the press to then they want big business here reading this I would nt want to have a business here .

[dutchman]

£1m Coventry bus gate fines blasted by independent tribunal - but council ignored concerns

THOUSANDS more drivers could have been unfairly fined after using Coventry council’s bus gates, damning independent legal adjudicator reports show.

Yet the council has failed to act after collecting at least £1million in fines for one of five bus gates in the city alone.

Appeals by many individual motorists against the fines over several years to the adjudicator have been upheld, it has emerged.

The adjudicator at the Traffic Penalty Tribunal has also – in notifying the council – criticised inadequate signage at the bus gate under the Whittle Arches in Fairfax Street, which failed to properly notify drivers not to enter the bus gate.

It has also emerged that the independent adjudicator has for years made recommendations to Coventry City Council to improved the signage.

Yet those recommendations appear to have fallen on deaf ears – while fines totalling more than £1million for Whittle arch bus gate alone continued to support council funds.

Questioned about the independent adjudicator’s reports, councillor Jayne Innes, cabinet member for city services, claimed she was unaware of them.

She pledged today to read them for the first time and address the situation, while she continued to defend the council’s use of bus gates.

Around 95 per cent of appeals which went to tribunal were either withdrawn or successful.

The deputy chief solicitor at the Traffic Penalty Tribunal has said in his own rulings that the tribunal generally thinks the signage is not adequate at the bus gate under the Whittle Arch, and has written to Coventry council suggesting it makes the signs adequate.

The average number of fines issued to motorists caught at Whittle arch in August last year was 122 per day, it has emerged.

Between 2013 and last year, 58,552 fines were issued to motorists, with an income of £1,059,910 to the council.

The adjudicator’s reports and other material have now emerged following more painstaking work by resident and road campaigner Richard Heneghan.

Through a Freedom of Information request, he has also uncovered evidence that drawings in council paperwork falsely stated some advanced warnings, ‘Bus Gate Camera’ and ‘No Entry’ signs were in place on the approach from Swanswell pool to the Whittle Arches bus gate in August 2014. In fact, the council had removed them in 2012.

That false information had been sent by the council to the tribunals, it has emerged.

[rebbonk]

Slowly but surely the chickens are coming home to roost. Before too much longer there will be a case for charges to be made against specific councillors.

[dutchman]

New signs go up at 'inadequate' bus gates after millions paid in fines, damning tribunal rulings and council denials

NEW additional road signs are belatedly going up at Coventry’s ‘inadequate’ bus gates – after years of complaints from fined motorists, damning tribunal rulings and denials of problems by council chiefs.

We have also learned Labour council leaders are set to face questions at a full council meeting over their handling of the debacle.

Council chiefs this week responded to us by continuing to claim the bus gate signage was correct, despite the overwhelming written evidence from the tribunal rulings.

Campaigner Richard Heneghan, who has for years challenged the council over the issues, told us this week: “Since the story about the tribunal decisions broke last month, the council has been rushing around putting up signage they were being told for years was required but missing.

“They have not told anybody they are doing this work, or explained why, after years of maintaining it was not necessary.

“At Whittle Arch alone, they have been now forced to put up seven signs.

“At Gosford Street, the tribunal has been saying that the bus gate is inadequate because the council has erected the bus gate signs at the END of the bus gate, not the start as required by DfT legislation.

“Therefore, the driver is already in the bus gate before they know it, and in the words of the (tribunal) adjudicator, has no choice other than to go through the bus gate.

“The plan of the bus gate filed with the Traffic Penalty Tribunal contains signage which has NEVER been in place. Therefore, the tribunal is led to believe more signage is in place than it actually is. Nevertheless, the tribunal continue to uphold appeals.

“Instead of erecting large 750mm signs as stated in the DfT authorisation, they have used tiny 450mm niche signs, only intended to be used in areas where either special amenity considerations need to be made or physical constraints (i.e. the large sign can’t fit). This DfT is clear that this is the wording of the legislation. Neither of these considerations apply to this open, standard location.

“Smaller signs are likely to be seen later, and do not become legible until drivers are close to them, with less time to react.”

He added: “The signs do not comply and by reiterating this statement, the Cabinet Member simply reaffirms her inability to understand her portfolio.”

Similar to the Whittle Arch bus gate, 90 per cent of all appeals at Gosford Street bus gate have been successful, said Mr Heneghan.