Fines for stopping in yellow box junctions in Reading have more than tripled in a year, council figures show.
Reading Borough Council won permission to enforce moving traffic offences in November 2022 and began enforcement in February 2023 at the King's Road junction with Eldon Road and Orts Road. Since then ANPR cameras have been added at junctions across the town.
Yellow box junctions are criss-cross grids that stop drivers entering if the exit isn't clear. They're meant to keep junctions moving and cut delays.
The council's Parking Services Annual Report 2024/25 shows 5,883 penalty charge notices (PCNs) were issued in 2024/25, up from 1,638 in 2023/24 - an extra 4,245 fines in a year.
Of the 5,883 PCNs, 588 led to formal representations; 89 fines were cancelled and 165 were written off. A total of 5,256 fines were paid.
Most drivers - 4,768 - paid the discounted rate of £35 within 21 days. The rest either paid £70 within 28 days or the higher £105 charge. The figures also show 440 fines were registered at the Traffic Enforcement Centre in Northampton; in those cases drivers had to pay £115, plus a statutory £75 compliance fee if bailiffs were needed.
When enforcement starts at a new site, the first six months use warning notices rather than fines; 542 warnings were issued in 2024/25. Enforcement began at four more locations during the year.
Enforcement cost the council a net £681 in 2023/24 but produced a net surplus of £208,999 in 2024/25.
James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter
