Argument over the misuse of M4 bus lane

Frustrated black cab drivers who are complaining over the misuse of the M4 bus lane have taken matters into their own hands. The disgruntled cabbies have begun photographing drivers who are not allowed to use the restricted lane to use as evidence to present to the authorities.

The M4 bus lane which is 3.5 miles long and runs between West London and Heathrow was first introduced in 1999. Only buses, coaches, motorbikes, emergency vehicles and licensed taxis are permitted to use the lane. However Unite Union says its members are “fed up with misuse” of the priority lane and fear it will lead to a serious accident.

Steve McNamara, of the Licensed Taxi Drivers Association, said he’s had numerous near misses with on that stretch of the motorway as he said: “It’s actually very dangerous. You can be going down the bus lane at 50mph and someone pulls out from stationary on the inside.” He added that it’s only a matter of time before there’s a fatal accident.

Coach, bus and taxi drivers have been calling for the lane to be better policed for some time. A BBC investigation recently discovered that in the space of 12 months in 2008, only 14 drivers were issued with penalty fines after wrongly using the bus lane.

There is no designated CCTV in operation to monitor the lane and the Metropolitan police have admitted that policing this area is not one of their main concerns. A spokesperson for the force said: “The Met is constantly balancing our aim to improve safety on London’s roads with making the most effective use of road policing resources.”

However the cabbies hope to change this by taking their case, along with their photographic evidence, directly to the authorities. As Mr McNamara said, “It’s absolutely farcical. We’ve got a bus lane that no-one enforces – what is the point in having it?