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00:00It's fair to say all drivers know bus lanes exist, but in Tunbridge Wells more than 10,000
00:07people were fined on this bus gate in the last year.
00:11And for those being fined, they say the signs simply aren't clear enough.
00:17There are two types.
00:19These blue ones saw more than 8,000 fined last year, compared to a little less than
00:254,000 on these circular ones.
00:28Kent County Council is now proposing to standardise all to blue.
00:34So I've come down to Tunbridge Wells to see what shoppers make of the proposed new signs.
00:40You're going to make a split decision.
00:41Which sign would you think is easier to understand, the old one or the new one?
00:45The old one, I think.
00:46Old one, yeah?
00:47I don't know, maybe that one.
00:48So you think the new one's a little bit clearer?
00:50Yeah.
00:51I mean, to me, I think the first one, it's got a red thing saying no cars.
00:57To me, that's more obvious.
00:58No, I think that one makes more sense, because that one's in red.
01:02That's in a red circle.
01:03Which means don't go down there.
01:05It's a prohibitive sign, isn't it, a round one?
01:08But that blue one doesn't mean anything.
01:10No, I don't think that's very clear.
01:14So keep the old signs?
01:15I would say so, because of the red.
01:16You know, that doesn't look like you can't go, I don't know, but is that my knowledge?
01:21Oh, my God.
01:24Still a lot of confusion, but red wins.
01:28These signs tell motorists cars and motorbikes are not allowed down the road, whereas the
01:34blue signs are permitting taxis, pushbikes and buses.
01:39They both mean the same thing, but with blue becoming the standardised option, there are
01:43concerns it'll increase the number of fines.
01:45It really means that over the last two years, whilst the Borough Council, myself, residents
01:51and some of the drivers have all been complaining to Kent County Council, who are the highways
01:54authority, that the signage is wrong and needs fixing.
01:58They've ignored all of that, and now they're making the situation much, much worse.
02:03Kent County Council says they understand the concerns that the blue will bring.
02:07However, these signs are compliant with the highway code.
02:11They also confirmed a warning period is in place for six months to ensure motorists are
02:16aware of the restrictions and can plan another route in the future.
02:21It's unclear when the signage will change, but blueprints do seem to indicate that bus
02:27gates will also have road markings added.
02:30Gabriel Morris, in Tunbridge Wells.