by Eric Olsson, Telegraph
Image: Wikimedia Creative Commons
Council raises £360,000 from one traffic camera in a year as churchgoers are caught by restrictions
For nearly 20 years, Jacqueline Venus had been tending to her father’s grave in St Mary Magdalen church in Richmond, south-west London.
The 62-year-old, who is blind, can only access the church by car, usually driven there by her friends and brother.
But for nearly two years, Ms Venus has been close to being forced to stop visiting the cemetery, located on a small cul-de-sac on North Worple Way.
Since September 2024, Richmond Upon Thames council has banned drivers from travelling westbound on the road seven days a week between 7am and 7pm.
In the latest financial year alone, the council issued more than 4,000 fines to cars on North Worple Way, pulling in around £360,000 from just one camera, according to council figures shared with The Telegraph.
Reverend Adrian McKenna, parish priest of St Mary Magdalen, said the restrictions had caused “real and ongoing distress” for the Roman Catholic community.
He said attendance at some services was down by as much as a third, with elderly and less mobile parishioners fearful of getting fined.
“Some have simply stopped coming because of these changes, choosing parishes where parking isn’t restricted,” he said.
“As it stands, the only clear effect of extending these restrictions into the weekend is to limit the number of people able to attend Mass here.”