PCNs for Rotherhithe Tunnel since 02/19
Dear Transport for London,
With regards to the new vehicle restrictions on Vehicles entering Rotherhithe tunnel that came into force in Feb 2019 , I believe you have issue well over 78 thousand PCNs and raised well over £5,000,000 in Penalty Charge Notices.
Can you tell me if this is more a money making exercise rather than a safety issue?
If it is an issue of safety would you agree that the safety aspect of the new restrictions is clearly not working?
On average 15,000 drivers a month are not obeying your new restrictions and driving through the tunnel putting other tunnel users in danger.
Do you think it would better to spend some of the 5 million pounds you have raised thus far to produce more obvious and clear signage in order to stop motorists entering the tunnel when they shouldn't be? or is the "safety" aspect a decoy for a revenue raising tactic and you are more interested in fining motorists than the safety of motorists?
Yours faithfully,
Simon R Hall
Dear Mr Hall
Thank you for your email. As your enquiries require an explanative opinion as a response rather than the disclosure of recorded information, they fall outside the remit of the Freedom of Information Act. Therefore we have passed your email to TfL's Congestion Charge and Traffic Enforcement team who will be best placed to assist you.
They will contact you directly in due course.
Yours sincerely
FOI Case Management Team
Transport for London
Dear Mr Hall
Thank you for your email of 4 November 2019 regarding the Rotherhithe
Tunnel vehicle restrictions, which has been shared with me for response.
Please accept my apologies for the delay in my reply.
There is an ongoing programme of initiatives to improve the safety of the
Rotherhithe Tunnel. In September 2018 we carried out a detailed analysis
of the tunnel’s ventilation system, which would be used to extract smoke
and other dangerous fumes in the event of a fire. The new restrictions
were not introduced to raise revenue by penalising motorists, but to
ensure road users can continue to use the tunnel safely while we work on
plans for its future. The size and weight limitations significantly
reduce the risk of vehicle collisions, spillage of flammable materials,
and fires in the tunnel.
When we reduced the weight restriction we also reviewed and updated the
existing signage. The statutory sign placed at each of the entrances to
the tunnel is a prescribed sign, which the regulations define as meaning
“No goods vehicles exceeding max gross weight indicated prohibited”. It
was designed and confirmed by the Department for Transport and meets the
requirements laid out in the Traffic Signs Regulations and General
Guidance 2016. It is the correct sign for the restriction and supports
and enforces the Traffic Regulation Order.
The onus is on motorists to familiarise themselves with and adhere to all
road traffic signs. The sign and its meaning are laid out in the Highway
Code and its presence clearly conveys the information we are required to
provide to inform motorists of the restriction. While we are not legally
required to do so, we have also placed discretionary advance warning signs
along both approaches to the Rotherhithe Tunnel as a means of raising
driver awareness and providing advance notice of the restrictions.
Your comments about the effectiveness of the restrictions are noted. The
penalty has been in place since February 2019 and since then we have used
our discretion to limit Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) issued to one per
day per vehicle. However, as we have seen prohibited vehicles continue to
contravene, to keep the tunnel safe we are no longer limiting penalties to
one per day and drivers may now receive a PCN for every journey they make
through the tunnel.
I hope this clarifies the reasons behind the restrictions and explains our
position on the matter.
Yours sincerely
Alison Munro
Customer Correspondence Assistant Manager
[1]cid:image001.jpg@01CEC9BF.D7A14510 Transport for London – Licensing,
Regulation and Charging
References
Visible links
2. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/about-tfl/
Dear Alison Munro ,
Thankyou for your reply.
To summarise in short, as you mention increasing fines from ONE per day to one for every journey of prohibited vehicles, you would have to agree this IS a matter of raising revenue and NOT one of public safety. I'm sure its not in the interest of any motorists to pay a fee of £65 for a single journey through a tunnel.
Would you agree, if you were at all interested in public safety, the most logical, intelligent and best course of action would be to stop the infringement occurring in the first instance? This can be achieved by simply making the signage better, more visible and easier to understand, as it was when you had a simple sign reading "no vans - Cars only" (or words to that effect) before you introduced cameras and removed that sign on 4th Feb 2019.
I am very uninterested in whether the updated signs are "prescribed" or not, the FACT of the matter is - They are NOT EFFECTIVE, and by continuing to use them, you are placing users of the tunnel in danger by allowing over 1 thousand prohibited vehicles to drive through the tunnel every day.
Please can you tell me the sum of money raised by issuing penalty notices since the introduction of the cameras and utterly inadequate signs on 4th Feb 2019?
Yours sincerely,
s hall
Dear S Hall
Our ref: FOI-2801-1920/GH
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 13
December 2019 asking for the sum of money raised by issuing penalty
notices since the introduction of the cameras at the Rotherhithe Tunnel.
Your request will be processed in accordance with the requirements of the
Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy.
A response will be sent to you by 16 January 2020. We publish a
substantial range of information on our website on subjects including
operational performance, contracts, expenditure, journey data, governance
and our financial performance. This includes data which is frequently
asked for in FOI requests or other public queries. Please check
[1]http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/transpar... to see if this helps you.
We will publish anonymised versions of requests and responses on the
[2]www.tfl.gov.uk website. We will not publish your name and we will send
a copy of the response to you before it is published on our website.
In the meantime, if you would like to discuss this matter further, please
do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours sincerely
Graham Hurt
FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London
References
Visible links
1. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/transpar...
2. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/
3. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/about-tfl/
Dear S Hall
Our ref: FOI-2801-1920/GH
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 13
December 2019 asking for the sum of money raised by issuing penalty
notices since the introduction of the cameras at the Rotherhithe Tunnel.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of
the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can
confirm that we hold the information you require.
We can advise that TfL has received £9.3m paid against PCNs from the start
of enforcement until 9 December 2019.
If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable
to access it for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to
appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would
like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.
Yours sincerely
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London
From: FOI
Sent: 16 December 2019 11:36
To: '[FOI #617258 email]'
Subject: Freedom of Information request
Dear S Hall
Our ref: FOI-2801-1920/GH
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 13
December 2019 asking for the sum of money raised by issuing penalty
notices since the introduction of the cameras at the Rotherhithe Tunnel.
Your request will be processed in accordance with the requirements of the
Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy.
A response will be sent to you by 16 January 2020. We publish a
substantial range of information on our website on subjects including
operational performance, contracts, expenditure, journey data, governance
and our financial performance. This includes data which is frequently
asked for in FOI requests or other public queries. Please check
[1]http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/transpar... to see if this helps you.
We will publish anonymised versions of requests and responses on the
[2]www.tfl.gov.uk website. We will not publish your name and we will send
a copy of the response to you before it is published on our website.
In the meantime, if you would like to discuss this matter further, please
do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours sincerely
Graham Hurt
FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London
References
Visible links
1. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/transpar...
2. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/
3. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/about-tfl/
We work to defend the right to FOI for everyone
Help us protect your right to hold public authorities to account. Donate and support our work.
Donate Now