Motorist reveals he’s been hit with TWELVE fines by traffic camera that makes £100,000 a week

An agency worker is still reeling after being handed twelve separate £65 fines for turning left at an ‘unclear’ junction by the very same council that is currently employing him.

Foysal Ahmed, 37, has been left ‘very stressed and angry’ by the ordeal which has given him sleepless nights.

Mr Ahmed, who lives in the Docklands area of London, is just one of many to have been caught out by a new traffic enforcement camera in Hackney, east London. 

The camera was installed in June and had dished out nearly 14,000 fines by August 10 generating Hackney Council a whopping £898, 235 in just a nine-week period – almost £100,000 a week.

Mr Ahmed, who is temporarily working for the council as a project officer, thinks the signage could have been made clearer.

He said: ‘It has left me very stressed and angry that Hackney have not put up pre-warning signs. The signage is also covered by trees and the sign is so high it is not possible for motorists to read or see it in time.

‘Only recently they added a second sign and repositioned the signage lower. This suggests that Hackney have made an error, which they now realise.’

A car turns left onto Richmond Road from Mare Street in Hackney, east London. Vehicles are no longer permitted to make the left turn between 7am and 10am, and 3pm and 7pm from Monday to Saturday

Vehicles were spotted making a now illegal left turn from Mare Street onto Richmond Road in Hackney, east London in June. A new traffic enforcement camera has been catching out thousands of motorists

A video was captured of several vehicles making the now illegal left turn from Mare Street onto Richmond Road in Hackney, east London. The video was shot 'during operational hours' according to Twitter user @LundunFeeldz

Vehicles were spotted making a now illegal left turn from Mare Street onto Richmond Road in Hackney, east London in June. A new traffic enforcement camera has been catching out thousands of motorists 

Mr Ahmed was caught out by a camera which is designed to prevent motorists turning left from Mare Street onto Richmond Road.

The changes to the junction follow the introduction of a ‘school street’ outside nearby London Fields Primary School.

The left turn ban is in operation between 7am and 10am, and 3pm and 7pm from Monday to Saturday.   

Mr Ahmed received his first fine on June 18. He claims he wasn’t notified of the fine until one month later, however, during which time he had committed another eleven offences. 

He said: ‘I have appealed to Hackney Council parking services and am waiting on their response.   

‘The penalty charge notices have made me very upset, annoyed, angry, frustrated and stressed.

‘They’ve also given me insomnia and I’ve suffered huge financial loss.

‘The traffic camera serves no purpose as you can still turn into Richmond Road if you come from the opposite side of Mare Street.’

They’ve also given me insomnia and I’ve suffered huge financial loss. 

Mr Ahmed’s comments come as dozens of affected motorists contacted Mail Online to vent their frustrations over the new camera. 

He is, in fact, not the only person connected to the council to raise concern.

One employee, who asked to remain anonymous, said: ‘I am a Hackney council employee who has received a number of tickets at this junction.

‘I know of a number of staff members who work closely with this team who implemented this traffic change who have also received tickets.

‘The numbers shown of people who have received a ticket show that this is an utter joke.’    

Other unassuming motorists, who regularly travel along the route, have also been caught out.  

James Thomas, 49 and who lives in North London, has been handed four penalty charge notices. 

James Thomas, 49, has been hit with four penalty charge notices. He only realised his driving error when he received the first fine, a few weeks after he made the now illegal left turning

James Thomas, 49, has been hit with four penalty charge notices. He only realised his driving error when he received the first fine, a few weeks after he made the now illegal left turning

He said: ‘It has made me feel angry, ripped off and cheated as they had taken weeks to arrive after the contravention meaning that I had incurred further fines. 

‘Normally they send tickets immediately. 

‘They are clever though as they sent them out a few weeks after the date of the contravention but still within the 28 day time frame which they legally have.’

Mr Thomas, who works as a plumber and gas engineer, claims the only purpose of the camera is ‘to generate money for the council’.

He said: ‘I didn’t appeal the fines as looking on forums regarding this particular enforcement in Hackney everyone was saying they had appealed the fines to the council and they had all been rejected.

‘So I paid the £65 instead of appealing and it possibly raising to £130.’

Romas Balynas, 40 and who lives in the Limehouse area of London, also raised concern over how long it took to receive the fine. 

Romas Balynas, 40,  has received six fines. He claims he made the contravention three times in just one day. He's labelled the camera as only designed to 'make money by catching people out'

Romas Balynas, 40, has received six fines. He claims he made the contravention three times in just one day. He’s labelled the camera as only designed to ‘make money by catching people out’

Having so far received six, he said: ‘The most annoying thing is that it was two weeks later after my first contravention that I have received the penalty charge notice. 

‘So in the meantime I carried on making this turn. I am sure there will be few more in the next coming days.’ 

Mr Balynas, who has taken the same route to work for the past five years, wants to contest the fines but hasn’t yet been able to.

He said: ‘This CCTV camera and the whole restriction is absolute nonsense. 

‘I do believe that this has been put for one and single purpose – to make money by catching people out. 

‘This school pioneering scheme is a perfect excuse.’

Andreas Maroudias, 47, was caught out by the camera in June and as he was driving a work vehicle the fine was simply deducted from his wages.

He questioned just how visible the sign was on the approach along Mare Street, saying: ‘The signs are really poor and I think it’s a disgrace that they have made so much money in such a short amount of time.’

Mr Maroudias, who is a self-employed van courier working for eCourier has now dubbed the road NightMare Street following the ordeal.

He said: ‘The fine has been paid and there is nothing I can do about it’. 

Andreas Maroudias, 47, had the fine for his penalty charge notice deducted from his wages. He labelled the signs 'really poor' and has dubbed the street NightMare Street

Andreas Maroudias, 47, had the fine for his penalty charge notice deducted from his wages. He labelled the signs ‘really poor’ and has dubbed the street NightMare Street

One person is even being taken to court over the fines. 

Mays Al-Ali, 40, lives just a few roads away from the turning from Mare Street onto Richmond Road. 

She said: ‘I got three fines in the space of a couple of weeks. I appealed against them, they got rejected and now I’ve appealed again and am going to court.’

Ms Al-Ali, who works as a yoga teacher, believes only people who live on the road were made aware of the new camera.

She said: ‘I use the junction very regularly as my best friend lives on the same road as the new camera.

‘Incidentally she was warned about it as she lives on the road but no one else in the borough was.

‘This I think is the big mistake they made’.        

Mays Al-Ali, 40, is off to court after appealing her penalty charge notice twice. As a regular user of the road she was surprised to find herself handed a fine for driving down it

Mays Al-Ali, 40, is off to court after appealing her penalty charge notice twice. As a regular user of the road she was surprised to find herself handed a fine for driving down it

Stuart Rosenberg, 40, has had to pay £650 in fines having been caught by the new camera on ten separate occasions.

He said: ‘I had no warning of the new cameras. I have a business one mile away and have been going home that way for nearly nine years with no issue.

‘I was extremely annoyed when receiving these. I sent photos of the tree obstructing the signs.’

Mr Rosenberg, who owns a fitness club on the edge of Hackney Road and Cambridge Heath Road called Fitness4Less, has also complained about how long it took to repay the fines.

He said: ‘The tickets had to be paid individually. The council refused to take one payment from me and sent me online. 

‘This process took me an hour just to pay the bloody tickets. It’s bad enough getting them but then taking an hour to pay them just got me furious.’ 

Some have been trying to appeal the fines, blaming the originally poor signage and tree cover.

Sean Donnelly has managed to get three of his six penalty charge notices withdrawn.

He said: ‘I was notified 26 days after the first contravention that was the first I knew about the restriction.  

‘There is no warnings anywhere that the junction has changed . I actually had to go to the junction to look for the signs and take pictures.’

Jim Peacock, 43, describes himself as a 'conscientious driver' but he's been hit with a fine for turning left on Mare Street in Hackney, east London

Jim Peacock, 43, describes himself as a ‘conscientious driver’ but he’s been hit with a fine for turning left on Mare Street in Hackney, east London

Mr Donnelly, who lives in Kent but commutes to London, has also spoken of the pressure the fines have put him under.

He said: ‘It has taken a lot of my time sorting out appeals and the stress it has put me under as I have a lot going on in my life at the moment.’

Jim Peacock, 43, describes himself as a ‘conscientious driver’ who obeys local traffic laws.

He has also been hit with a fine. 

He said: ‘I don’t mind the council changing access but there is clearly a money raising agenda here as the original signage was inadequate. 

‘The subsequent money they’ve extorted through intimidation should be reimbursed to the hard working people of London.’

A car turns left at the junction from Mare Street to Richmond Road in east London. Motorists caught going left are handed a £65 fine. Instead they should continue forward along Mare Street

A car turns left at the junction from Mare Street to Richmond Road in east London. Motorists caught going left are handed a £65 fine. Instead they should continue forward along Mare Street

A traffic enforcement camera installed at the junction of Mare Street and Richmond Road (pictured) has made Hackney Council a whopping £898,235 in just a nine-week period. Cars turning west onto Richmond Road are handed a £65 fine if they perform the manoeuvre between 7am and 10am, and 3pm and 7pm from Monday to Saturday

A traffic enforcement camera installed at the junction of Mare Street and Richmond Road (pictured) has made Hackney Council a whopping £898,235 in just a nine-week period. Cars turning west onto Richmond Road are handed a £65 fine if they perform the manoeuvre between 7am and 10am, and 3pm and 7pm from Monday to Saturday

Hackney Council has previously responded to complaints over the new sign.

A spokesman said: ‘The changes to this junction are part of our pioneering school streets initiative which is improving air quality and making it easier and safer for families to walk and cycle to and from school.

‘The notices already meet all Department for Transport requirements, and we have now added additional signage to ensure all drivers comply and help make our children’s school journeys healthier.

‘While it is the responsibility of drivers to read this signage and adhere to the road closures, we will of course listen to representations where a driver feels that a fine has been issued unfairly or received multiple fines during a short period.’

Asked why the restrictions were also in place on a Saturday – a non-school day – a spokesman for Hackney Council said: ‘The banned turn into Richmond Road was designed to run alongside our pioneering school streets scheme.

‘It operates on a Saturday to reduce traffic at Broadway Market, making it safer on market day, and reduce general through-traffic in the area, which residents have been expressing concerns about for a number of years.

‘In consultation, people in the local area supported a scheme that operated Monday to Saturday at peak hours. Responding to the consultation, 66 per cent of people supported the banned turn into Richmond Road.’

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