A typo has sparked a legal row which could lead to hundreds of thousands of pounds being refunded to motorists caught driving in a bus lane, residents have claimed.
The bus lane in Hartfield Road, the one-way system in Wimbledon town centre, was installed despite opposition from local councillors and residents, and has generated more than 6,000 fines since November 18, 2011.
At a minimum of £60 for each fine, the bus lane has generated at least £360,000 for Merton Council, which revealed it was yielding about £3,000 a day when it was first brought in.
But now a partnership of residents, including a former Merton Council officer and a former Transport for London member of staff, have accused the council of using underhand tactics in order to catch out motorists – fining some motorists several times for bus lane infringement they were unaware of.
The claims were made after an anomaly was discovered in a legal traffic management order, which was drafted by council officers and signed off by cabinet member for regeneration Councillor Andrew Judge.
It states no cars may drive in the bus lane between 7am and 10am or 4pm and 7pm between Monday and Saturday.
But before it was amended in January, the order included a typo, which meant the bus lane was effective “between 7am 10am and between 4pm and 7om [sic]”.
A council spokeswoman insisted the error did not affect the legality of the bus lane but one resident lodged a formal complaint.
He said: “Obviously anyone with common sense can see it is a typo and they meant to write pm instead of om.
“But this council lost the ability to appeal to common sense when it decided to fine people several times for driving in the bus lane when they didn’t know it was there.
"For weeks the signs and road markings were inadequate, but common sense would dictate that, if the council seriously didn’t want people to drive in the bus lane, it would take greater steps than what is legally required.”
The resident believes if his action is successful it would leave the council liable to refunding all tickets issued before January.
Councillor David Dean, who represents Dundonald ward and was a vehement opponent of the bus lane, said the council should go one step further and refund all the fines it has collected.
He added: “The residents are right that the council can’t appeal to common sense.
"Where is the common sense in putting a bus lane on the right hand side of the road?
“Ever since the bus lane was installed I have been asking Transport for London (TfL) for the evidence that it has reduced bus congestion, but they haven’t given it to me.
“The whole point of this bus lane was to supposedly ease congestion for the buses, but I suspect the evidence will prove that all it achieves is to make money for the council.”
A TfL spokesman said usually collect six months of data before conducting a study into how bus lanes affect the routes, while a Merton Council spokeswoman said officers would carry out an assessment “later in the year” on whether bus journey times had been improved.
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