Drivers must be vigilant when driving down these 10 ‘High-quality Streets’ which have generated probably the most penalty cost notices (PCNs) prior to now yr – and mixed they’ve seen motorists incur greater than £42million in fines.
A Freedom of Data request to councils revealed some single streets are accountable for greater than 50 per cent of all prices issued by native authorities over the 12-month interval.
Company Avenue within the coronary heart of Birmingham’s metropolis centre, has been named the worst of all with 62,725 PCNs dished out to motorists over the past reporting monetary yr.
Nearly all of PCNs had been for breaches of town’s Clear Air Zone, Birmingham Metropolis Council stated.
These would have been issued to drivers of non-compliant autos exited the A38 Aston Expressway onto Company Avenue on the zone’s outer restrict.
Drivers are being warned to be extraordinarily vigilant when driving down these 10 streets throughout the nation which have generated probably the most PCNs final yr
Of the ten streets the place probably the most PCNs had been distributed, six cashed in additional than £1million in fines, the investigation revealed.
The outcomes will undoubtedly set off critical questions from motorists concerning the equity of prices.
The comparability website requested each UK council which single avenue of their authority space had seen probably the most PCNs issued in 2024/25.
Of all 383 UK authorities contacted, 359 responded with knowledge.
PCNs are issued for a mess of infringements. This contains parking offences, straying into bus lanes, stopping in yellow field junctions and coming into low emission zones in non-compliant autos with out paying.
Probably the most prices had been issued to drivers in Birmingham coming into Company Avenue, with 62,725 PCNs dished out
| Avenue | Council | Variety of tickets | % of all PCNs issued by the council | PCN complete worth | Avg ticket value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company Avenue at Aston Street (inbound) | Birmingham Metropolis Council | 62,725 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Oxford St (Whitworth St to Chepstow St) | Manchester Metropolis Council | 39,521 | 7% | £1,297,692 | £33 |
| Cumberland Street | Bristol Metropolis Council | 37,862 | 7% | £1,434,912 | £38 |
| Heaton Lane, Central Stockport | Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council | 34,284 | 57% | £1,213,604 | £35 |
| Station Parade (Barking) | London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Council | 33,419 | 14% | £2,030,242 | £61 |
| George Avenue, Corby | North Northamptonshire Council | 32,100 | 40% | £789,931 | £25 |
| Bull Lane N18 | Enfield London Borough Council | 30,276 | 15% | £1,313,410 | £43 |
| Mount Nice | Tunbridge Wells Borough Council | 28,930 | 42% | £991,815 | £34 |
| Arundel Gate (N/E certain) nr St Paul’s Place Service Street | Sheffield Metropolis Council | 27,963 | 14% | £941,353 | £34 |
| Albert Bridge (North Facet) | Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea | 27,821 | 10% | £1,971,714 | £71 |
| Supply: Confused.com Freedom of Data request to all UK councils. Of the 383 councils, 359 replied | |||||
The info revealed that £42,194,821 was collected by councils for offences dedicated on the ten streets the place probably the most PCNs had been dished out over the 12-month interval.
Figures shared by native authorities confirmed that over half a billion kilos (£530m) was collected by councils in motoring PCNs in complete within the final fiscal yr, Confused stated.
Whereas Company Avenue in Birmingham at Aston Street (inbound) noticed probably the most PCNs issued, Station Parade in Barking accrued the very best revenue from prices, raking in £2,030,242.
Barking & Dagenham Borough Council issued 33,419 tickets for offences on this avenue in 2024/25, largely as a consequence of drivers coming into a pedestrianised zone.
These fines made up one in seven (14 per cent) PCNs distributed by the council that yr.
In the meantime Heaton Lane in Stockport generated 57 per cent of all PCNs distributed by the Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council.
The council in 2022 launched a ‘bus gate’ – a brief part of street that solely permits buses and different particular authorised autos (resembling taxis, cycles, and emergency autos) to go via – which triggered a surge in PCN volumes.
The same bus gate on Cumberland Street in Bristol – third general for probably the most PCNs issued – is probably going additionally accountable for nearly all prices issued on the road, with enforcement of the bus gate beginning in January 2024.
Second within the checklist of streets the place most PCNs had been issued was bustling Oxford Avenue within the coronary heart of Manchester, particularly the stretch between Whitworth Avenue to Chepstow Avenue, which has a bus lane and pay and show parking bays.
Manchester Metropolis Council stated the vast majority of PCNs had been associated to enforcement of the bus lane.
Heaton Lane in Stockport – fourth within the checklist – generated 57% of all PCNs distributed by the Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council
A bus gate on Cumberland Street in Bristol – third general for probably the most PCNs issued – is probably going additionally accountable for nearly all prices issued on the road
With councils amassing important sums from parking and site visitors fines, it is no shock that many drivers are questioning how pretty these penalties are being issued and causes for this.
In keeping with a survey of two,000 UK drivers, 57 per cent have acquired a PCN and 12 per cent have acquired a PCN on the identical avenue greater than as soon as.
Practically half had been penalised for parking offences, together with parking on a yellow line, not paying for parking, or parking in a restricted space.
These fines are most frequently picked up in busy areas, with 47 per cent of drivers receiving their PCN in a metropolis centre, and one other two in 5 fined on a residential avenue.
And the price of parking penalties can shortly add up.
A 3rd of drivers stated they paid between £50 and £100 in parking-related PCNs.
Two in 5 drivers consider the present value of parking fines is simply too costly.
But, one Dorset Council threatens to ship prices skyrocketing after making a request to hike PCNs in its space.
Final week, Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole Council appealed to the DfT to permit it to completely challenge fines of as much as £160 – on par with London – to sort out unlawful parking on its shoreline hotspots after the very best prices had been efficiently trialled in August.
The AA has warned that – if granted permission – it might ‘burst the dam on the worth of prices’ issued nationwide and dangers councils treating motorists like a money cow to bolster depleted native authority coffers.
Station Parade in Barking (pictured) accrued the very best revenue from prices, raking in £2,030,242
The ballot of drivers discovered that simply over two in 5 (42 per cent) motorists who stated that they had acquired penalty prices appealed to have them overturned.
1 / 4 of those stated the attraction course of supplied by the distributing council was ‘troublesome’.
Of those that did attraction, a fifth stated it was as a result of the PCN had been issued ‘unfairly’. One other 15 per cent stated their offence was unintentional as a consequence of unclear or complicated signage or street markings.
A fifth of drivers stated the enforcement of low emission zones in main cities and the introduction of contentious Low Visitors Neighbourhoods (LTNs) had additionally elevated the probability of receiving PCNs on sure streets.
Matt Crole-Rees, a spokesman for Confused, stated: ‘Whereas fines are supposed to hold roads secure, our analysis reveals a rising variety of motorists really feel the system is not at all times clear or honest.
‘Complicated signage, altering street guidelines and restricted parking all enhance the possibilities of drivers being fined, notably in busy areas.
‘When restrictions aren’t straightforward to know, it turns into more durable for drivers to make assured selections and keep away from pricey errors.
‘Should you obtain a PCN, it is value taking the time to verify whether or not it has been issued accurately, as some fines could be challenged, notably the place signage or street markings are unclear.’
