Bus lane — broken down / forced to enter to allow safe passage
Where a vehicle has broken down causing the driver to enter a bus lane to clear a live lane safely, or has briefly entered to allow another vehicle to overtake / pass safely (especially HGVs in narrow streets), the contravention may be defensible as reasonable use. Adjudicators recognise safety-driven brief entry.
Legal basis
TMA 2004 s.144; Highway Code rules 277-287 (breakdowns); Bus Lane Regulations 2005
How to identify this in your case
Breakdown receipt (RAC/AA), CCTV showing safety motivation, witness statement. Time spent in lane (ideally minimal).
Sample appeal wording
Dear Sir/Madam, Re: Bus Lane PCN [NUMBER] — [DATE] I challenge this PCN. The brief entry to the bus lane was reasonable and necessary. At [TIME] I [broke down at [LOCATION] and pulled into the bus lane to clear the live lane / pulled briefly into the bus lane to allow an HGV to pass safely on a narrow stretch]. Evidence: - [RAC/AA call-out receipt] - [Witness statement] - CCTV will show duration of [X] seconds and the safety motivation Under Highway Code rules 277-287 a driver who has broken down should clear the live lane. The TPT has accepted reasonable safety-driven brief entry as a defence ground. Please cancel. Yours faithfully, [NAME]
Replace [PARKING DATE], [NtK DATE] etc. with your own dates before sending.
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