So, what I would love to know from the experienced members here is what I should do with a PCN that says "balance paid" even though I haven't paid anything?
If the answer is to still appeal, these are the main points of my case:
It was dark, I was driving through an unfamiliar part of London and there was no prior warning of the bus gate until it was too late. The sign was only visible when I got very close to it.
Once the restriction became apparent to me, I stopped at the entrance to the bus gate but was unable to reverse because a van behind me had boxed me in. Because of the proximity to my car and also it's headlights were raised and glaring into my rear-view mirror, I was unable to safely reverse without causing an accident. Because of this, I was forced to drive through the bus gate.
Article 5 of the Harrow (Bus Priority) Traffic Order provides that the restriction does not apply to a vehicle proceeding along a restricted route so as to avoid an accident. This provision has been applied by London Tribunals adjudicators in prior cases at this exact location on materially similar facts:
PCN HR76153840, decided 29 April 2025 (Adjudicator Henry Michael Greenslade), allowed where the appellant, faced with a parked car, oncoming traffic and a vehicle following closely behind in the dark, had to remain in the nearside lane to avoid a collision; the adjudicator found him a credible witness and held the accident-avoidance exemption applied.
PCN HR76988182, decided 14 October 2025 (Adjudicator Chez Cotton), allowed on the same exemption where a driver found, on approaching the restriction, that safely changing lane was not possible and continuing through the restricted route was the only way to avoid a collision.
Furthermore, the vehicle did not simply proceed past me into the width-restricted lane; having also stopped, it then reversed in order to position itself for the width restriction instead. This confirms that the layout at this point caused genuine uncertainty and difficulty for more than one driver on this occasion, not merely a subjective impression on my part.
