Drivers are often tempted to enter bus priority lanes; this practice defeats the lanes' purpose and entices other drivers to enter them. This article shows how mew methods to eliminate bus lane invasions are capturing violators quickly and efficiently, freeing up the roads, and easing traffic flow. Automatic systems to deter or prosecute illegal users of bus lanes have been tested for some time, especially in London. The article describes a trial system made by Golden River Traffic, using a new approach to automatic bus lane enforcement that records the offence for later viewing and also displays the offending registration number on a roadside variable message sign (VMS). Offenders are made aware that their vehicles have been detected and recorded, and other drivers may be deterred from violating the lane. The trial site was a southbound bus lane on a very busy road in Birmingham. The system uses a bus-mounted camera, so that an offence is recorded only when a bus is actually impeded. For each violation, an offence file is transmitted to a computer, containing text and graphical information about the number plate and a graphical image of the offending vehicle. Even after the 20-day trial, it was found that the average bus journey time was significantly reduced; this was the ultimate purpose of the system.
Samenvatting