THOUSANDS of drivers are being slapped with "unfair" and "unnecessary" fines as most box junctions in two major UK cities are too large, the RAC has claimed.
A new study from the organisation alleges that 97% of the junctions resulting in the largest number of fines create a larger restricted area than is needed.
The research examined 100 box junctions across London and Cardiff.
The criss-cross yellow road markings are designed to stop cars from blocking junctions and to improve the flow of traffic.
Drivers are not allowed to enter the boxes unless the junction exit is clear and they have enough space on the other side to drive through them without stopping.
Stopping within the box is punishable by a hefty fine of between £70 and £160.
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The only exemption is for drivers blocked by traffic in the far lane when turning right.
According to the latest figures, the top 100 boxes in the two capitals were responsible for 374,276 such fines being issued in 2019.
However, the RAC study found that the average box was around 50% larger than it needed to be to serve its purpose.
The club also claimed that 55% of them directly contravened government guidance, leading to drivers being fined unfairly.
Sam Wright, a chartered engineer and author of the report, called on the Government to update the rules councils have to follow when it comes to such road markings.
Mr Wright, who previously worked on designing box junctions for Transport for London, said: "The Government has stated that ‘poorly designed schemes can undermine enforcement overall and give rise to public perception of revenue raising.
"But it needs to go further and be crystal clear with local authorities about what is acceptable and what isn’t when it comes to the design of yellow box junctions.
"The current official design guidance is woefully inadequate and needs to be updated."
And things could be about to get worse as last year the Government authorised local authorities outside of London and Cardiff to enforce similar road laws.
Since then, a further 27 councils have proposed 111 new box junctions up and down the country.
RAC spokesman Rod Dennis added: "With more and more councils starting to enforce yellow box junctions, it is absolutely vital that they are designed first and foremost with aiding traffic flow and that they don’t exist simply to raise revenue from drivers.
"Unfortunately, any box that is bigger than needed – whether that’s due to an oversight on the council’s part or because it was painted on the road many years ago and hasn’t been reviewed – risks drivers being fined unnecessarily when their actions haven’t contributed to congestion."
A spokesperson for Cardiff Council said that each box in the city was "designed to legal requirements and recommendations" and that "specific factors at the junction" were considered when designing them.
They said: "Drawing up junction boxes without this key data, and without understanding where traffic is coming from and what might be causing issues which need to be remedied to ease congestion and improve traffic flow, we believe is fundamentally flawed."
A TfL spokesperson said: "Yellow box junctions play a vital role in keeping traffic in London moving and enforcement of the rules helps to reduce delays and keep people travelling safe.
"All yellow box junctions in London are designed with these purposes in mind and we disagree with these findings.
"We continue to keep our road markings well-maintained to ensure drivers are treated fairly."
A spokesperson for the Local Government Association, which represents councils in England and Wales, said: "Yellow boxes help keeps junctions clear for through-traffic, including emergency vehicles and to avoid traffic jams.
"Councils follow well-established government guidance when designing junctions.
"Fines are used to deter a minority of drivers from blocking a relatively small number of important junctions.
"Without this enforcement, all drivers would experience significant delays and frustration due to blocked junctions."
The association added that, in line with government rules, all money raided from fines are reinvested back into local transport projects.
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Meanwhile, the Department for Transport said it would be launching an eight-week consultation focussing on "preventing local councils from turning drivers into ‘cash cows’ by profiting from enforcing traffic restrictions."
The probe will "seek views from residents" and "quiz local authorities on how money from fines is reinvested", the announcement added.
