Emma Bartholomew has won a landmark case against a council raking in over £100k-a-week from a new a new traffic enforcement camera

A motorist has won a landmark case against a council raking in over £100,000-a-week from a new traffic enforcement camera.

Emma Bartholomew successfully appealed against a £65 fine after her mother made a left turn at a junction in Hackney, East London.

She took the council to a tribunal who ruled the new signs banning the left turn at certain times of the day were 'inadequate'.

Since being installed more than 20,000 people have been hit with penalty charge notices raking in £14,000 a day for the council.

Emma has now encouraged other motorists hit with the fine from Hackney Council to consider launching an appeal.

'I was able to argue my case that the signs at the junction are not clear and confusing for motorists,' said Emma.

'I am pleased the tribunal ruled in my favour and I think others who have fallen foul of the camera and been sent fines should consider making an appeal.'

Last June Hackney Council banned drivers from turning left at a junction in the hope of reducing air pollution at a nearby school.

The traffic enforcement camera has reaped close to £1m in just nine months for the council making it one of the most profitable in the UK.

The mother-of-three successfully appealed against a £65 fine after her mum made a left turn at a junction in Hackney, London (pictured) in a tribunal decision meaning more could appeal

Despite complaints about poor signage and a difficult road layout, the council have refused to take down the camera which monitors cars turning into Richmond Road from Mare Street.

Mother-of-three Emma said her 72-year-old mother Pam was 'flashed' by the camera as she turned off Mare Street on her way to drop off clothes at a local hospice.

She said: 'My mum was visiting and I had been having a clear out and she volunteered to drop the clothes off on her way home.

'She had no idea about the camera and the first we knew was when a fine appeared in the post. The conditions she was driving in were not very good and she just did not see the sign.'

Emma, a journalist on the Hackney Gazette, had an initial appeal against the fine rejected by the council.

She applied for her case to be heard at the London Tribunal and appeared in person to argue the no left turn sign – which is enforced during rush hour only – was confusing and poorly sighted.

Had she lost the appeal she would have been forced to pay £130.

But after showing the tribunal adjudicator photos of the sign and explaining her case he ruled in her favour and dismissed the fine.

Despite complaints about poor signage and a difficult road layout, the council have refused to take down the camera which monitors cars turning into Richmond Road from Mare Street

Emma has now encouraged other motorists hit with the fine from Hackney Council to consider launching an appeal against the poorly signposted camera on the left turn

Allowing the appeal, Mr Sean Stanton-Dunne said: 'The no left turn sign is positioned beyond the traffic lights so that it may not be clearly seen before the lights.

'The lights are in front of the sign and so risk causing an obstructed view from car level in the left hand lane.

'There is an advance warning sign further back from the lights but this is tilted at an angle so that it does not directly face the approaching motorist.'

Emma said she was thrilled to win her case and strike a blow for other motorists.

Emma, a journalist, had an initial appeal against the fine rejected by the council

She said the tribunal chairman told her a small number of motorists had appealed against the fines.

Hackney Council banned drivers from turning left at the junction in June in the hopes of reducing pollution at a nearby school.

'Poor signage' and a 'difficult road layout' have been blamed by motorists for the small fortune the council has amassed.

In the first nine weeks of the camera being installed the authority had dished out nearly 14,000 fines.

With the cost of a fine standing at £65 if paid within two weeks, the council has generated a whopping £898,235 for itself in that period.

This works out at nearly £100,000 every week - or £14,000 a day.

One 74-year-old Islington Council worker - who has been using the junction for 30 years - has been slapped with 21 tickets, totalling £1,365.

The country's highest earning speed camera only made a comparatively low £1.5 million - or £250,000 a month - in the six months between April and October 2016, despite being located on London's busy North Circular Road.

Residents have vented their frustrations at Hackney Council's perceived money-grabbing tactics.

Twitter user Baz commented: 'This restriction is poorly conveyed (judging by the amount of PCNs [penalty charge notices] issued and the number of repeat PCNs), and is definitely not in the spirit of the law, regardless of whether the signage meets the standard required or not.'

Also writing on Twitter, Trajon2000 said: 'Councillors will be giving themselves a big pat on the back for that, oh and a big payrise.

'Just a thought here, if they put more of these signs around the borough to catch people out, could we have a council tax reduction please.'

Figures released by the council show that of the 20,869 penalty charge notices issued since June 3,705 were appealed. Of these only 1544 were upheld.

A Hackney Council spokesperson said: 'Two thirds of cases heard by the adjudicator have been won by the Council. There are three signs warning of the no-turn before and at the junction, as well as an illuminated sign on the traffic light which warns drivers when the restriction is in force. These signs are Department for Transport approved, and go over and above the requirements for a restriction of this type.

'Nonetheless we always remain open to making further improvements, and will be inviting an adjudicator to visit Richmond Road so that we can discuss any concerns they may have, and agree how to address them for the benefit of motorists.'