A ROAD where sneaky CCTV cameras hit illegally parked drivers with more than £1million in fines in a year has been revealed.
There are at least seven fixed CCTV cameras spying on errant motorists in Kentish Town Road - and, in 2007, they were responsible for the issuing of £1.09million in fines.
In total, fixed CCTV cameras pointed at the borough's drivers - trained to catch people parked illegally and also those doing banned turns, blocking box junctions or straying into forbidden bus lanes - issued more than £9.2million in fines from 139,828 tickets last year.
This is the equivalent to one fine being dished out every four minutes.
And the most costly spot for motorists overall was Southampton Row, Bloomsbury.
There fixed CCTV cameras clocked up a staggering £2.5million in fines last year - around £1.6million for moving traffic offences such as banned turns, around £612,000 for going into bus lanes and around £234,000 for parking illegally.
Barrie Segal, who runs the UK-wide AppealNow.com website, said: "I think readers will be absolutely astonished. It's an incredible figure.
"I believe the cameras are being used as 'a shoot first, ask questions later' enforcement, which I think is illegal.
"The guidance to local authorities is that CCTV cameras should only be used where it's inappropriate for parking attendants to patrol."
The figures were obtained by the Gazette under the Freedom of Information Act. They showed that around 130 fixed CCTV cameras issued driving fines across more than 160 different roads last year - although they are also used to help catch criminals.
In the 2006-7 financial year, CCTV cameras and cars were responsible for almost a third of the tickets issued to motorists.
Shopkeepers in Kentish Town Road were appalled that their road had issued so many CCTV fines to people stopping on yellow lines - but not surprised.
Traders have long complained that the cameras are putting off customers and strangling business.
Ashley Lambert, the manager of Discount Furniture in Kentish Town Road, Kentish Town, said the shop could end up closing.
He said: "We get tickets all the time and our customers get tickets all the time.
"We can probably stick it out for another year but if business keeps going down we won't be here - and we have been here for 15 years. Last year business was down 20 per cent on the year before because of the parking issue."
Kynn Darkwa, sales assistant of Carpetright in Kentish Town Road, said: "I was transferred here because the shop was struggling. But we are still struggling - and it's because of the parking."
Luciano Zazzi, manager of Franchi Locks and Tools in Kentish Town Road, added: "I am shocked by the figure. I didn't expect it to be so high. Local government has sacrificed local businesses for extra finance.
"Most of the time, people are stopping for just a couple of minutes."
But a Camden Council spokesman said: " We enforce parking rules to make the borough's roads safer for everyone who uses them, to protect scarce parking spaces for those who have a right to park there, and to reduce congestion and keep traffic flowing.
"Kentish Town Road is very narrow and busy. We need to provide space for businesses to load without adding to congestion and this restricts the amount of parking that can be provided.
"Three years ago we reviewed the parking and loading restrictions in and around Kentish Town Road. We relaxed the loading restrictions and introduced pay and display parking where we could - often in the side streets."
Tickets and fines racked up by fixed CCTV cameras in Camden in 2007
THE TOP THREE - ALL PARKING, MOVING TRAFFIC AND BUS LANE OFFENCES
Location Tickets Value
Southampton Row, WC1 23,762 £2,460,470
Grafton Road, NW5 12,564 £1,257,100
Kentish Town Road, NW1 and NW5 10,707 £1,171,520
All 139,828 £9,263,960
THE TOP THREE - PARKING
Location Tickets Value
Kentish Town Road, NW1 and NW5 9,897 £1,090,220
Fortess Road, NW5 4,033 £437,220
Kingsway, WC2 3,373 £364,160
All 47,964 £5,326,560
THE TOP THREE - MOVING TRAFFIC
Location Tickets Value
Southampton Row, WC1 16,141 £1,614,100
Grafton Road, NW5 12,504 £1,250,400
Boswell Street, WC1 8,313 £831,300
All 80,237 £1,987,700
THE TOP THREE - BUS LANES
Location Tickets Value
Kilburn High Road, NW6 1,618 £819,610
Southampton Row, WC1 5,386 £612,350
Haverstock Hill, NW3 1,842 £208,800
All 11,627 £1,949,700
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