Free Traffic Legal Advice

Greetings and thanks for running this forum!

I have been notified by the lease company of a PCN issued about entering the bus lane in Minster Street, date of Notice 08/12/2025. Lease company replied to Council with my details (which are correct).

I haven't received a "new" PCN in the post yet, but I have the details of the original one, which I checked on the council's website and it's still pending. Now the original "bribe" deadline for not challenging the PCN (only paying half of the £70 amount) has expired. But a Charge Certificate was not issued yet (or at least I haven't received yet) despite having been more than 28 days from the original letter (to the lease company).

Unsure of what to do. Chances are the new PCN got lost in the post; I don't think the council is going to cancel it.

- Should I contact the council and ask them to pay the reduced rate?
- What if I want to appeal the PCN?

PCN **as received by lease company**

https://imgpile.com/p/UH4GNku#fsETwFR
https://imgpile.com/p/UH4GNku#s1YtI0l

Thank you @Incandescent for the reply. So you're basically suggesting that:

- The lease company might have paid it already - pretty sure it didn't happen, because if I visit the payment link it still shows it pending.
- The council may not yet have cancelled the old PCN, and I should check with the lease company whether they've been advised or not from the council - I'll try to check with them.

In cases like this, if you know, does the old PCN get cancelled and a new one issued with a different number? The original one is definitely still pending. Perhaps it is a sign that the new one has not been issued yet? Although the lease company replied to the council on 12/12/2025 so it has been some time now.

PCN scans:

https://imgpile.com/p/UH4GNku#fsETwFR
https://imgpile.com/p/UH4GNku#s1YtI0l

As the car is leased, this is the PCN received by the lease company. The one I received is **identical** (including PCN) except for:
- Notice date: 21/01/2026
- My address instead of the lease company's (which I blanked out anyway)

Minster Street in Reading is a known spot where a lot of PCNs are issued. A bus-only road, it begins at the end of another road (King Street) where there is no option to turn anywhere else bar making a 3-point turn in a normally busy area. The only sign before the bus lane, signaling that restrictions are in place, is a 6-line descriptive sign just ahead of the "last good turn" and horizontal markings indicating "all traffic" to turn left (into Duke Street) and "bus gate ahead" entering the last stretch of King Street.

Location of the bus gate:

https://maps.app.goo.gl/TEwVgc2SUFq5toSN9

Here's a YouTube video, taken from a bus (not by me) showing the route - helps to understand if you haven't been there:



(the road where I was supposed to turn into to avoid the bus lane (Duke Street) wasn't closed at the time I went through the bus lane).

The "descriptive sign" is at 11:34. The driver here stops right ahead of the bus gate at 11:55 and enters it at 12:20. Cameras are visible at 12:25.

Some people call it a "trap" and effectively I felt trapped. I saw the sign with the 6 lines of text and thought "I need to be careful, there are traffic restrictions ahead" but I did not realize that I should have turned left there and then. I saw the road markings, but did not interpret them properly. Finally, I saw the signs before entering Minster Street, knew exactly that I should not enter it, yet I saw no other option (as I don't normally do 3-point turns in the middle of traffic) and thought that it was too late, so I entered the road and saw the cameras after.

I am inclined to challenge this. I know common points brought forward are:
- Unclear signage
- Road layout making it nearly impossible to avoid the bus gate once past the last intersection where it is possible to turn left
- A few issues with the wording of the PCN

I should also note that the infraction happened at 10:48, and the bus gate ends being active at 11:00 - not sure if this qualifies as "de minimis" violation.

I know the council will very likely reject the appeal. I know some people have had success with an adjudicator, but others have not, by browsing through pepipoo archives.

Is there an "update", or recent advice, on how to act when challenging PCNs at this specific location? And, thanks!

(Issue originally raised here: https://www.ftla.uk/civil-penalty-charge-notices-(councils-tfl-and-so-on)/reading-minster-street-bus-lane-leased-car-pcn-not-received-yet/ reopening for clarity)

Gentle bump on this

I'm going to make representations using the points I mentioned earlier:
- Unclear signage
- Road layout making it nearly impossible to avoid the bus gate once past the last intersection where it is possible to turn left
- A few issues with the wording of the PCN

I will stress out how drivers who are not familiar with the area are more easily caught unaware.

I also plan to include a link to version of the youtube video I posted, with added my voiceover commenting the route, but using Vidcast, which will let me count the visits (as a last resort, considering that in the template rejection they say to have "fully considered" my arguments but I doubt they'll watch a video). This was suggested in a sticky post. Any other suggestions or alternative options for using a "verifiable" clickable link?

Something I don't know to choose is the "ground" on which I make representations. Should I use:
- The alleged contravention did not occur; or
- There has been a procedural impropriety by the enforcement authority; or
- Other grounds

Any further advice / recommendations?