Durham County Council is planning on celebrating taking over the running of bus lane cameras by introducing a new one.
The local authority will take over responsibility for enforcement on September 16 and have announced a new portable camera will be touring round the area.
First it will be set up on North Road in the city centre where CCTV revealed 66 vehicles used the road illegally in just nine hours in July last year, according to the council.
The council say they are "freeing up police officers for their core duties" by assuming responsibility for bus lanes.
The new portable camera will work through a system of automatic number plate recognition.
For the first two weeks, those caught misusing the bus lanes will be sent a warning letter.
From Monday 30 September, they will be issued with a £60 penalty charge notice, which will be reduced to £30 if paid within 14 days.
The money raised through the charges will be invested back into managing the road network in County Durham.
Dave Wafer, the council’s strategic traffic manager, said: “Bus lane restrictions are important and we want drivers to know that there are consequences to breaching them.
“When motorists use bus lanes as a shortcut or to bypass queuing traffic, it not only effects the reliability of the bus network, but it can impact on road safety and traffic flow, including cyclists and pedestrians.
“We hope the enforcement camera will make motorists think twice before misusing bus lanes in the future, and the public will support us in ensuring County Durham’s roads are safe for all.”
