Drivers in new yellow box enforcement areas fined nearly £1m in a year
- Perry Richardson
- Jul 1
- 3 min read
Drivers in ten local authority areas newly enforcing yellow box junction rules paid almost £1m in fines last year, according to new data from the RAC.
Before May 2022, only London and Cardiff councils could enforce yellow box junctions and other moving traffic offences. Since then, other councils in England have taken up the powers. Freedom of Information requests show that by early this year, 36 boxes outside the two capitals were being enforced. These generated 32,748 penalty charge notices (PCNs) in 2024 alone. A typical PCN is £70, reduced to £35 if paid within 21 days.
The RAC found big differences in enforcement numbers across the country. Manchester City Council handed out the most, issuing 13,130 PCNs from six yellow boxes last year. This brought in £446,706 in fines.
Medway Council in Kent came second. It issued 4,433 PCNs from five boxes, raising £145,162. Buckinghamshire County Council was third, collecting £139,798 from 3,618 PCNs.
Together, these three councils issued 65% of all yellow box PCNs outside London and Cardiff. They collected nearly three-quarters of the total fine income, amounting to £731,666.
Surrey had the highest income from a single yellow box. At the Dennis Roundabout in Guildford, 4,250 PCNs were issued over seven months. Drivers paid £81,445 in fines there.
The RAC said the figures suggest potential issues with the design or placement of some boxes. By contrast, some councils handed out very few fines. Gloucestershire City Council issued just 30 PCNs between May and December 2024, bringing in £945. Leeds City Council issued 50 PCNs over four months, totalling £605 in fines.
The Highway Code states drivers must not enter a yellow box unless their exit is clear, except when turning right and held by oncoming traffic. The RAC has flagged problems with many boxes, including poor visibility, oversized layouts and boxes that extend beyond junctions.
Statutory guidance says councils should issue warning notices in the first six months of enforcement before moving to fines.
Rod Dennis, RAC senior policy officer, said: “Yellow boxes serve an important purpose in keeping traffic flowing at busy junctions. But with councils outside London and Cardiff enforcing them for the first time, it’s now more important than ever they do everything they can to ensure drivers don’t get unfairly caught out. After all, very few people set out to deliberately flout the rules and get fined.
“The enormously high number of penalty charge notices being raised in just a few council areas suggests things are awry. The large number of penalties being dished out over a small number of locations and in a short space of time should send alarm bells ringing in council offices.
“As the data shows, not every council now enforcing yellow boxes is generating a huge amount of money from fines. In fact, a small number of fines – and a small number of appeals – indicates a yellow box that’s working as it should. This should be the ambition behind any yellow box that a council is looking to start enforcing, rather than being seen as a revenue-raising opportunity.
“It's vital box junctions are used in the correct places and are only as big as absolutely necessary. They must be fairly set up so that drivers don’t find themselves stranded through no fault of their own. Sadly, we are aware of several locations where this isn’t the case.
“We’ve previously expressed concern that drivers would get fined unnecessarily without the Government updating its box junction design guidance. This must clearly set out the locations where they can be used and, crucially, ensure they are sized correctly so as not to trap drivers unwittingly. With more local authorities likely to enforce yellow boxes in the coming months and years, it’s vitally important this happens.”
