Drivers in Manchester caught breaking the rules around yellow box junctions have been fined nearly £450,000 after enforcement powers were made available to councils, new figures show.
Data obtained by the RAC revealed more than £1m in penalty charge notices (PCNs) were issued across the UK from 36 junctions in the last year.
Manchester City Council, which issued the most fines of all local authorities in England, said Highway Code rules for the junctions were needed to “prevent gridlock” in busy parts of the city.
However, a spokesman for the RAC said the “enormously high number” of fines should “send alarm bells ringing in council offices”.
The Local Government Association said: “All councils follow guidance to ensure motorists are treated fairly.
“There are processes for appeal if anyone believes they have been unfairly fined.”
Yellow box road markings are used to try ensure traffic flows smoothly through busy junctions and motorists should not enter them unless their exit is clear or they are waiting to turn right.
Those who break the rules, which are set out in the Highway Code, can risk a fine, which is generally £70 but can be reduced to £35 if paid within 21 days.
In Manchester, £446,706 was brought in through fines for 13,130 breaches across six junctions.
Rod Dennis, from the RAC, said some councils were using the junctions simply as a “revenue-raising opportunity”.
Only a fraction of yellow box fines were appealed against by drivers, with the highest proportion appealed being 18% in the Manchester City Council area.
Nationally, the junction that generated the largest revenue was at Dennis Roundabout in Guildford, Surrey, costing drivers £81,445 as 4,250 PCNs were issued.
London and Cardiff were the only parts of the UK where drivers could be fined for yellow box offences until new legislation was introduced in 2022.
Freedom of Information data provided by English councils showed 36 yellow boxes outside London and Cardiff were enforced last year, with drivers paying £998,640.
Mr Dennis said: “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.”
Manchester City Council said cameras were well signposted and advertised and had been put in place to “act as a deterrent” against drivers making illegal turns or blocking of the boxes.
A “six-week period of grace” was also implemented, it said, with any first offenders within the first six months only sent warning letters.
Additional reporting by PA Media
