Box Design
What is a dodgy box?
The biggest scourge of the yellow box system is poor design of boxes. Many boxes are too big and parts of them serve no purpose. My study for the RAC showed that 9 out of 10 boxes proposed to be enforced in England are problematic. Often such boxes are legal (although some are illegal, see guide for details) therefore once a ticket has been issued, the fact it serves no purpose is not grounds for appeal. In the example below from Birmingham, only the yellow area covers a cross movement. The red area serves no purpose. Vehicles in that area are all travelling in the same direction, there is no "cross" movement.
How should boxes be designed?
Good box design is the foundation of fair enforcement. Yellow boxes should only cover the area of a junction necessary to protect a cross movement. If designed correctly, then any vehicle that stops in it should, or potentially should, be obstructing a movement that would otherwise have a clear exit. And if they are to be enforced, then drivers should have clear visibility to see where they end and to see if there is enough space to fit their vehicle on the exit.
This box below is far too long. The proof of this can be seen in the video below which shows a vehicle stopped on it yet buses are still easily able to turn into the side road.
How can we fix dodgy boxes?
Removing unnecessary boxes, reducing the size of them, stopping enforcement or adjusting the area enforced can save thousands of people the headache of unfair tickets and is my biggest passion. If you are a member of the public, the only way to do this is through pressure, for example a petition, to the authority in charge of it. In my career I removed and reduced the size of many dodgy boxes, showing that it can be done. If you are an authority that believes in fairness and would like technical assistance to review your boxes please contact me.