Time to get tough on bad driving. And personalised number plates! – Vladimir McTavish

Blocking the yellow box at traffic lights is becoming a regular sight
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I was very pleased to see this week that Edinburgh City Council has started sending out traffic wardens on Lothian Buses in the morning rush hour, so they can issue tickets to motorists who have parked in the bus lane. This is designed to speed up bus travel and help the drivers stick to the timetable.

Predictably, some people are complaining that the council is just doing this to make money. I think it’s fair enough. What’s wrong with making money out of selfish idiots who park in the bus lane? In fact, while we’re at it, they could make a lot more money by issuing fines for some of the other forms of moronic behaviour blighting our streets.

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Blocking the yellow box at traffic lights is already an offence, and it’s committed on numerous occasions every single day. Take a 27 bus up Dundas Street towards the city centre in the evening rush hour, and I’d suggest you also take a good book to read as your journey will last a long time.

Some drivers' sense of entitlement can result in gridlock (Picture: David McNew/Newsmakers)Some drivers' sense of entitlement can result in gridlock (Picture: David McNew/Newsmakers)
Some drivers' sense of entitlement can result in gridlock (Picture: David McNew/Newsmakers)

If you have to catch a train from Waverley, you’re probably best getting off three stops early and walking the rest of the way, because it’s 99 per cent certain your bus will be stuck in gridlock at the junction of Queen Street and Hanover Street after someone decided to muscle their way into an already horrendous traffic jam. This is usually either a parcel delivery van whose driver is on a ridiculously tight schedule, or a massive black Mercedes SUV whose driver has a ridiculous sense of entitlement.

Anyone parking on double-yellow lines next to traffic lights and blocking off a filter lane should get six points on their licence. Anyone taking too long to move off after the lights turn green should get an automatic six-month driving ban. And driving a car with a personalised number plate should be made an actual criminal offence.

In case you’re wondering, I actually found the time to write this while stuck in a traffic jam on a 27 bus. Some complete idiot in front has driven into the yellow box.

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