THOUSANDS of drivers may be let off speeding fines over a crafty loophole.
Speed signs along the major road in south-east London didn’t meet regulations – resulting in the pardon of over 60,000 speeding offences in the area.
The Sidcup bypass had new speed limits enforced after flooding caused a ‘danger to life’[/caption]
The A20 near Sidcup was reduced from 70mph to 40mph in October 2023.
The slower rule was implemented for a year after flooding caused cars to skid off the road.
However, it could bring good news for those slapped with penalties as it was discovered the signs failed to meet regulations.
According to the Government Traffic Signs Manual, speed limit signs should be at least 750mm wide.
Thomas Turrell, the Conservative member of the London Assembly for Bexley and Bromley, pointed out that the Transport for London (TfL) signs were 450mm wide.
TfL argued that the signs were “correct and compliant with the regulations”
The MP told The Telegraph: “This isn’t a handful of Top Gear enthusiasts who have ignored the signage and then claim they haven’t seen it.
“This is a huge amount of people who have been hit by this, and lots of people would not have even realised they’d done anything wrong,” he added.
LBC presenter Iain Dale was one of those motorists hit with a speeding fine after not spotting the signs.
He was dragged to Willesden Magistrates Court over the offence, which collapsed after the key police witness failed to attend.
Taking to his blog, he wrote: “I was accused of speeding on the A20 dual carriageway heading out to the M25.
“It’s a road I know well, and I am well acquainted with the speed limit.
“There was no signage in the central reservation to tell me so, and apparently only one small 40mph sign over the left, which would be invisible at night either due to another car obscuring it, or as there was no streetlighting.”
Drivers are forced to pay a minimum of £100 and three penalty points on their licence.
A driving ban is put in place after 12 penalty points.
A spokesperson for TfL said: “Safety is our number-one priority, and we temporarily introduced a 40mph speed limit on the A20 Sidcup Road in response to a number of incidents caused by ongoing flooding issues, which posed a risk to life.
“New regular speed limit signage, compliant with all traffic sign regulations, was installed to ensure that everyone driving on this stretch of road was aware of the new limit.
“All signage installed by TfL for the 40mph speed limit was correct and compliant with the regulations.”
However, a lawyer who specialises in motoring offences, said the signs were “definitely too small”.
“Obviously, if they’re tiny, the motorist can’t read them,” he added.
This comes after a motorist was let off three points and £100 after he was given a helpful heads-up from a resident of the road.
The stretch of road in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, was subject to a 30mph Traffic Restriction Order (TRO), which had recently been lowered to 40mph.
However, it transpired that the order had not been enforced properly, so the limit was not active.
Moreover, the driver argued that the improper introduction of the new limit voided the old 40mph TRO.
He then consulted Warwickshire County Council’s Highways Department, claiming that its legal team confirmed that the road is no currently subject to any limit.
He told Coventry Live: “So the B4112 Nuneaton Road between Chetwynd Drive Nuneaton and Weston Lane Bulkington is not subject to enforceable speed restrictions.
“£100 and three points returned leaving me again with a clean licence and a rare apology.”
The driver accepted that speeding is an offence but urged others to look into whether they may have been wrongly fined.
A letter he received from Warwickshire Police stated that the charge was being withdrawn due to an “error during the processing of this offence”.
Warwickshire County Council declined to comment.
Thomas Turrell found that the signs were too small, arguing they were impossible to see[/caption]
