Lewisham council reverses £55,000 in LTN fines after motorists were forced to take diversion through closed streets due to traffic chaos caused by burst water main

• A burst water main forced traffic to take a controversial diversion in Lewisham
• Lewisham Council promised it would not fine people but issued £54,730 in fines
• They have now had to refund more than £18,000 of payments already received

Lewisham council has reversed £55,000 in LTN fines after major floods forced motorists to take a diversion through closed streets.

When a burst water main caused traffic chaos in the London borough, the council said they would not fine anyone who had to take the controversial alternative route.   

According to The Telegraph, however, a local resident has forced Lewisham Council to accept it broke its promise after it issued 421 penalty charge notices (PCNs) worth £54,730 that day. 

Annie Kirby, 51, made the Labour-run council cancel the fines and refund more than £18,000 in payments it had already received – setting a new record for successful appeals. 

The mother-of-three explained a water main had burst in the early hours of January 6, causing the roads to become gridlocked. 

When a burst water main caused traffic chaos in Lewisham, southeast London, council bosses said they would not fine anyone who had to take a diversion through a controversial low traffic neighbourhood 

However, the council broke its promise when it issued 421 penalty charge notices (PCNs) worth £54,730 that day, after people drove through the roads it had closed 

‘Streets within the LTN were pretty much the only ones motorists could use,’ she said. 

‘But, whoever drove down them faced a fine because of automatic number plate recognition cameras the council installed to enforce its road closures.’

The council posted on social media at 11am that ‘PCNs will not be issued to anybody’ because the flooding cornered motorists into using the closed streets. 

Ms Kirby said she took a screenshot of the tweet to be safe. 

However, the mother soon heard that people had still been fined – with many paying the £65 reduced rate to escape the full £130 penalty, unaware of the council’s promise.

A water main burst in the early hours of January 6, causing roads to become gridlocked 

School children had to be rescued in dinghies by firefighters after the ruptured water main caused flooding in southeast London

Last week bosses at Lewisham apologised and agreed to cancel all the fines – nearly three months after the main pipe burst

‘It simply wasn’t fair,’ said Ms Kirby. ‘The council was in the wrong by saying one thing and doing another.’ 

READ MORE: School children are rescued in dinghies by firefighters as roads turn to rivers in south east London after a main burst left homes cut off by six-foot deep water

After the dementia support worker pursued the council, civil servants eventually admitted they had issued 421 tickets and gathered £18,785 in payments.

‘Lewisham Council didn’t seem to care how these fines upset people,’ said Ms Kirby.  

Last week, bosses at Lewisham apologised and agreed to cancel all the PCNs – nearly three months after the main pipe burst. 

Around 70 firefighters were called to six feet of flooding on Meadowcourt Road and Eltham Road after the pipe burst, with the road turning to a river.

A council spokesperson said: ‘As a result of an internal miscommunication in relation to the implementation of this policy, a number of PCNs were issued in error on January 6.

‘While many of these PCNs have already been cancelled, we have cancelled any outstanding PCNs issued on this date and are refunding anybody who has already paid a PCN issued in error on this date.’ 

MailOnline has approached Lewisham Council for comment.  

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