6,500 fines for using Games Lanes

Drivers have racked up 6,500 fines totaling £845,000 for driving in Games Lanes.

Transport for London said motorists risked a £130 fine for using any of the 30 miles of lanes reserved for athletes, officials and media during the Olympics.There has been a 98% compliance rate since the restrictions on the Olympic Route Network (ORN) came in on 25 July.Drivers were warned but not penalised for the first six days, TfL said.The £130 fine also applies to drivers who use the Paralympic Route Network.The network, which came into effect on Wednesday morning, is smaller than the Olympic Route Network with about 8.7 miles of Games Lanes in operation.Garrett Emmerson, TfL's chief operating officer for surface transport, said "vital" lanes were open to general traffic when it was not too busy.Emmerson told the BBC: "We had no interest in unnecessarily penalising drivers and, with a very high compliance rate of around 98%, the overwhelming majority followed the requirement to stay out of Games Lanes when they were in use."In order to give drivers time to get used to the changes we made to the road network, we issued warning notices rather than Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) during the first six days of its operation."We subsequently issued PCNs to drivers who contravened the ORN, but continued to be proportionate and sensible; we sought compliance from drivers, not income from fines. Some 6,500 PCNs were issued."