Nice little earner (penalty charge notices in Dulwich)

[Earl Aelfheah]

Oh good. Another thread on LTNs. I was getting worried that we were in danger of being restricted to fewer than half a dozen different discussions making the same points.

[EDRH1114090399]

We were also caught out by the camera at the end of Townley Road and also in Dulwich Village. This is obviously a money making scheme for Southwark Council, as the signage is inadequate, and residents were not informed about the road priority changes. Also the signs were put up while we were locked down. The consultations were restricted to 2000 people and 2 out of the 3 public meetings were at Alleyns and JAGs. Additionally, the council had at the beginning of the scheme been issuing warnings to first time offenders rather than a PCN (until 12th January 2021) and should have continued to do this, especially as we have been slowly coming out of lockdown over the last few weeks.

Anyone who has received a PCN can argue that no warning letter was sent after the first alleged offence before a PCN was issued. Also that there was no prior information for residents, no genuine public consultation, poor signage and we were locked down when the signs were put up.

This was our experience of appealing. We were sent 4 PCNs, two for Townley Road and two for Dulwich village. One of the Dulwich village PCNs was dated 50 days after the alleged contravention. The council is legally obliged to send out a PCN within 28 days of a contravention, therefore any PCN dated more than 28 days after the contravention is INVALID, and you do not have to pay the fine. Of the other two, we appealed for the reasons already mentioned earlier (after the 14 day discount period had ended). By law, all issuing authorities have a maximum of 56 days to respond to your appeal. In addition to this, if an authority has its own stated policy on its response time to an appeal, they are obliged to follow it. Southwark council is legally obliged to respond to email appeals within 21 days. They have still not responded after a month. This means that the PCNs are now invalid.

It's good to know that the council are legally obliged to follow their own stated policies and that they are also obligated to respond within a given timeframe. If they fail to do this the PCN is invalidated. We have seen on various earlier threads that the council in the beginning did respond to appeals but it looks as though they are no longer doing so - this could be because they have already reached a financial target (having made 2.5 million pounds with just 3 cameras over a 3 month period - posted in a previous thread).

We're posting this simply to say what our experience was and to point out that the council also has obligations. If you feel for whatever reason that a PCN has been issued unfairly then ALWAYS APPEAL. If the council do actually respond and reject your appeal within 21 days then you can take the appeal higher, to the London Tribunals, who are independent adjudicators, and will judge the case on its merits in an impartial way.

[Delphi]

Thank you for posting this - it's been very helpful to read. I have just recently received a PCN from Southwark council because apparently I contravened code 33e when I was driving along Townley road approaching East Dulwich Grove by the junction of Calton avenue. I had no idea about about any changes to using this junction and that there have been cameras installed there and was surprised to learn that between certain times cars cannot now drive up to the junction where Alleyns and Jags schools are - I have been driving this way on occasions for many decades. I was taken aback to receive this PCN with a very large fine attached - ?130 (?65 if paid within 14 days. As you say, the signage is completely inadequate and easy to miss. I also think that the council should have written to all council tax paying residents (I live in East Dulwich) informing them, and at the very least to have a system in place where you are given a warning on the first occasion, so that you know about it. It seems to me that this is unscrupulous behaviour on the part of the council; it is a money making scheme through entrapment, by catching people on camera unawares that they are contravening anything. I don't agree with these changes that have been made and as a local resident and tax payer I was not consulted about them. The roads are there for all of us and I don't agree with the road closures and other traffic measures in and around Dulwich that Southwark council have introduced under the radar during the pandemic and lockdown periods. I will make an appeal against this PCN and would like to know if there is anything we can do collectively as residents to get these changes reversed.

[mrwb]

There is nothing that you can do for now. The council will just issue a sham consultation that has a predetermined outcome to do what they want and continue the schemes. At least that is what happened so far.

The only possible way of stopping it I can see would be to elect new councillors with a specific mandate to put a stop to it. Even then I wouldn't be surprised if the incumbents win again...

Who locally would be prepared to stand? Maybe one of the Dulwich groups campaigning against the restrictions will put candidates forward?

[Delphi]

Thank you. Very much appreciated indeed

[intexasatthe moment]

In a car the other day ,stopped at crossroads Gallery Rd and South Circular and noticed the plethora of signs ahead .

The red rectangle outlining the hours when access through DV are prohibited is obscured by the new ULEZ sign .

If you stand next to the little group of signs it doesn't seem as though one obscures the other but viewed from a car at the other side of the lights the prohibitive sign is not readable .

Another sign on the south side of the junction would sort this .

[intexasatthe moment]

Not the best of pictures ,apologies.

[oimissus]

That's ridiculous. I would send that to the council and ask them how any motorist, even chugging along at 20mph, is meant to make head nor tail of that. If you are not local you wouldn't have a clue.

I thought excessive street signage was meant to be a danger to road users? Maybe send it to the police as well to ask if they support this.