Penalties for police officers seen driving in bus lanes

Dozens of officers were caught out by closed circuit TV cameras installed by Bradford Council in September to catch motorists illegally entering city centre streets where only buses, taxis and bicycles are allowed.

Officers who were sent 30 fines have been forced to appeal on the grounds that they were responding to an emergency incident or were carrying out their statutory duty.

The chairman of the West Yorkshire Police Federation, representing rank and file officers, Michael Downes, said yesterday: "The public and senior officers want police to be high-profile and highly visible.

"What's immeasurable is the amount of crime prevented as a result of police officers being on patrol. Is it the case that these streets will become a no-go area for police officers?

"Criminals may think they can commit crimes on these streets because police are not allowed to patrol. It's idiotic."

The council admitted it was "not an entirely satisfactory situation" but stressed that discussions had been held with police to find a better way forward.

Bradford South Chief Insp Tim Redhead said: "It is clear that Market Street and Bridge Street are key access routes in to the city centre and, as such, a blanket waiver has been put in place to cover all marked police vehicles using bus lanes. This will allow their routine patrols to continue unaffected."