Motorists could be slapped with a hefty £130 fine if they fail to adhere to strict rules regarding stopping in traffic. Across the nation, a plethora of road markings guide drivers' behaviour, but ignoring these can result in fines and potential legal issues.
Yellow box junctions, marked by yellow squares with a criss-cross pattern, often cause confusion among drivers. These markings indicate that vehicles should not stop within the area, barring a few exceptions.
Failure to comply can lead to a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) of up to £130 in London or £70 elsewhere, as per RAC. This penalty is typically issued when a vehicle obstructs traffic by stopping in the yellow box junction.
However, paying a reduced rate within 14 days can help avoid the full fine. Rule 174 of the Highway Code provides an exception to this rule, stating that motorists can enter the box if their exit road or lane is clear.
If you're slapped with a fine over yellow box muddles, you might have a case for appeal. The code suggests: "However, you may enter the box and wait when you want to turn right, and are only stopped from doing so by oncoming traffic, or by other vehicles waiting to turn right.
"At signalled roundabouts you MUST NOT enter the box unless you can cross over it completely without stopping."
There's an arsenal of reasons you could have a successful appeal. For example, one motorists driving in the second lane said that the exit to the yellow box was was clear until another vehicle cut up her exit path.
CCTV backed up her appeal which led to a successful appeal. Another driver similarly claimed his exit was suddenly blocked off on a yellow box junction when a vehicle in the offside lane pulled into the lane that other vehicles was moving into.
This also led to the appeal being approved by their local authority. Further examples of appeals that are both approved and denied can be found on Yellow Box Guru here.
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