More bus lanes in central Auckland are being monitored 24 hours a day.

Auckland Transport has installed CCTV cameras in bus lanes on Queen St, Hobson St and Khyber Pass Rd. There are already CCTV cameras monitoring enforcement on Fanshawe St.
John Strawbridge, Group Manager Parking Services and Compliance says the cameras have leading edge, purpose built analytics. “They generate an alert so we don’t need to have an enforcement officer set up on the street with a mobile camera. The CCTV footage is then reviewed by an experienced staff member who makes the decision about whether an infringement should be issued.”
When CCTV was introduced on Fanshawe St in July last year there was an initial jump in the number of infringements issued but now infringements are back to similar levels as before CCTV.

John Strawbridge says this is about freeing up bus lanes for buses. “A bus can move around 70 people, it’s much more efficient than clogging the roads with cars. The lane on Fanshawe Street currently carries more than 5,000 people during the morning peak hour, compared to approximately 1800 people in cars in the other two lanes.”
The key benefits of using CCTV to remotely monitor bus lanes are:
• Lanes can be monitored 24/7
• One officer can monitor multiple lanes
• Eliminates health and safety risks for staff who would normally need to stand on the road side for hours
Bus lanes are for buses, motorcycles, scooters and cyclists. Other vehicles can enter the bus lane to turn left up to 50 metres before turning.

The infringement fee for driving illegally in a bus lane is $150, this fee is set by central government not Auckland Transport.

For more on bus and transit lanes: https://at.govt.nz/driving-parking/ways-to-get-around-auckland/carpooling/bus-transit-priority-lanes/ and on infringement reviews: https://at.govt.nz/driving-parking/parking-rules/types-of-infringements/infringement-review-guidelines/

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