Guides · Bus lanes & transit lanes · updated September 2026
Bus lane and transit lane fines — what the rule actually says
The short answer:the $150 lane ticket is an owner-liability, camera-enforced offence. It is also the most misunderstood fine in the country. There is no “free 50 metres” — there is a crossing exception with three conditions. Councils have to prove you were in the lane beyond what a turn or merge required, that the lane was lawfully marked and signed where you joined it, that it was operating, and that your vehicle wasn't a permitted class. Below is the rule verbatim, how the big issuers prove it, and where to dispute.
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Check my ticket freeThe rule, verbatim
Land Transport (Road User) Rule 2004, clause 2.3(1)(f): a driver “must not use … a special vehicle lane reserved for a specific class or classes of vehicle unless (i) the vehicle is one of the class or classes of vehicle for which the lane is reserved; or (ii) the vehicle is an emergency vehicle being used in an emergency.”
The exception everyone half-remembers is clause 2.3(4). A driver may drive in the lane if they:
- drive in it to cross it to make a turn; or leave a road; or enter a marked lane or line of traffic from the side of the road or from another lane; or park in a place clear of the lane; or (for a passenger service or goods vehicle) enter a stopping place or loading zone; and
- drive in it “for the minimum length necessary to complete the manoeuvre and for no more than a maximum length of 50 m”; and
- give way to vehicles entitled to use the lane.
Three cumulative conditions. The 50 metres is a cap on a listed manoeuvre, not an allowance. Clause 2.3(3) separately permits using the lane where “it is impracticable to proceed otherwise because of … a road obstruction” and it is safe — a crash, roadworks or a broken-down vehicle, with no 50 m cap. Councils take the view that a queue of traffic is not a road obstruction.
Who may use the lane
A bus lane is reserved for buses and — unless the sign or marking excludes them — cycles, mopeds and motorcycles; electric vehicles only if the sign specifically includes them. A transit lane (T2, T3) is for passenger service vehicles (taxis and ride-share on hire), vehicles carrying at least the number of people on the sign including the driver, cycles, motorcycles and mopeds; some are signed “T2 or HV” and admit heavy vehicles. Children and infants count as people. Outside the signed hours the lane is an ordinary lane; if no hours are shown it operates 24 hours.
The lane has to exist where you joined it
The Rule defines a bus lane as one reserved “by a marking or sign installed at the start of the lane and at each point at which the lane resumes after an intersection”. The Traffic Control Devices Rule 2004 (cl 11.2) makes the road controlling authority mark a white symbol on the road at the start and after each intersection and, for any lane that is not 24-hour, install a sign stating the hours at those same points. Coloured surfacing is optional. So if you joined after an intersection where the symbol had worn away or there was no hours sign on a peak-only lane, the lane arguably wasn't defined at that point — photograph it and ask the council for the sign and marking maintenance records.
How the cameras prove it
- Auckland Transportruns the country's biggest programme (Fanshawe Street, Grafton Bridge, Queen and Hobson Streets, Khyber Pass Road, Newmarket, Mayoral Drive, Lambie Drive, Dominion Road, and transit lanes on Onewa Road, Albany Highway, Constellation Drive, Walmsley Road and others). Each enforcement zone runs between a measured ingress and egress point — 70 to 133 metres apart — and AT says an offence needs continuous travel through both. It publishes its images online 5 to 10 working days after the offence (plate and notice number) and says it generally tickets only beyond 70 metres. Its position is that the camera is “secondary evidence” and the reviewing officer's witnessing is the primary evidence — so ask who reviewed it and what distance they measured, rather than arguing about calibration.
- Wellington City Council has fixed cameras on Courtenay Place, Manners Street, Adelaide Road, Pirie Street, Chaytor Street, Riddiford Street and Cambridge Terrace, with Willis Street and Lambton Quay added in September 2026 — 38,912 tickets in 2025. You can view the footage at its portal before appealing. In 2022 it cancelled 1,544 Riddiford Street tickets and refunded 350 because the layout was confusing.
- Christchurch (Riccarton Road, 24-hour, plus Lincoln Road and Cranford Street from 2026) and Tauranga (Hewletts Road and Hairini Street) use CCTV reviewed by an officer. Tauranga says it waives lane tickets only in “extenuating circumstances such as a medical situation” — so the argument there has to be about the elements, not sympathy.
Grounds worth raising
- A listed manoeuvre within 50 m. Name it — the left turn into which street, the driveway at which number, merging from the kerb — and demand the entry and exit frames, the measured zone length and the frame showing the turn.
- Obstruction. A crash, works, cones or a broken-down vehicle made it impracticable to proceed otherwise; dashcam or roadworks notices.
- Permitted vehicle. Motorcycle, moped, cycle, bus, taxi in a transit lane, heavy vehicle in a T2/HV lane, emergency vehicle.
- Outside the hours. Compare the image timestamp with the sign; a peak-only lane with no hours sign at your entry point is not lawfully defined there.
- No symbol or sign at the join point. Dated photos and Street View; ask for maintenance records.
- Occupancy met (T2/T3). Who sat where; passenger statements; the side-camera image.
- Identification. Plate legible, your vehicle continuous through the zone rather than crossing it.
- Not the driver / company car / sold. Statutory declaration under s 133(4) — available as of right for lane offences.
- Notice defects and timing.The prescribed form needs the site reference, time, place, fee and your hearing rights; a posted notice is served when it would arrive in the ordinary post; if the council's reminder particulars reach the court more than six months after the offence, no fine can be deemed.
What doesn't work: “first offence”, “didn't know” and hardship. Auckland Transport says each “will not succeed” and that “legislation does not allow for leniency”; Wellington lists the same three as unlikely. Put them in as a line of mitigation at most.
Where to dispute
| Issuer | Channel and deadline |
|---|---|
| Auckland Transport | Online portal or post to Infringement review, Private Bag 92260, Auckland 1142 — 28 days from service; view images first; disputing does not pause the due date. |
| Wellington City Council | Appeal portal or Parking Resolutions, PO Box 2199 — 56 days from issue but by the due date; enforcement pauses while they decide. |
| Christchurch City Council | Dispute form, parking@ccc.govt.nz or PO Box 73014 — driver must lodge; reviews take about six weeks. |
| Tauranga City Council | Parking fines page (online form at tauranga.govt.nz/contactparking) — within the time on the notice's summary of rights. |
Common questions
Can I drive 50 metres in a bus lane?
Not as a free allowance. Clause 2.3(4) of the Land Transport (Road User) Rule 2004 lets you drive in a bus or transit lane only to cross it — to make a turn, leave the road, merge from the kerb or another lane, or park clear of the lane — for the minimum length the manoeuvre needs and never more than 50 metres, giving way to buses. Cruising along the lane for 40 metres with no turn coming is still an offence. Passing a queue is not one of the listed purposes either.
What's the fine for a bus lane or T2/T3 ticket?
$150, set nationally by the Land Transport (Offences and Penalties) Regulations 1999 for 'unauthorised use of special vehicle lane'. Parking in a bus lane is a separate $100 offence. Councils cannot reduce the amount; only a court can.
How does Auckland Transport prove I was in the lane?
AT sets each camera enforcement zone between a measured 'ingress' and 'egress' point (measured with a calibrated wheel, typically 70 to 133 metres apart) and says an offence is recorded only when a vehicle passes the ingress, the middle scene and the egress continuously. A warranted officer reviews the footage. AT also says it generally issues a ticket only after more than 70 metres of travel. So ask for the ingress and egress frames and the measured distance — and for the frame showing what your car did next.
The lane wasn't marked where I joined it — does that matter?
Yes. A bus lane legally exists only where a marking or sign is installed at the start of the lane and at each point where it resumes after an intersection. The Traffic Control Devices Rule (cl 11.2) requires a white lane symbol at those points and, for a lane that isn't 24-hour, a sign stating the hours. Green surfacing is optional, so argue the symbol and the hours sign, not the colour.
I had passengers in my T3 lane car but got a ticket — what now?
A T2 or T3 lane requires the number of people on the sign including the driver, and children count. Cameras and officers miss car-seat, reclined and rear passengers behind tinted glass — Auckland Transport itself lists 'non-detection of particular occupants' as a waiver category, and 1,462 of 37,164 T2/T3 tickets between 2022 and 2024 were withdrawn after dispute. Say who sat where, offer passenger statements or school and daycare records, and ask for AT's side-camera image.
Someone else was driving my car in the bus lane — can I transfer it?
Yes, as of right. Lane offences are 'special vehicle lane offences' under s 133 of the Land Transport Act 1998: the registered owner has a defence if they write to the issuer immediately on learning of the notice and provide a statutory declaration naming the driver with their full name, address and other particulars known. That applies even if you lent the car. Our paid letters include the declaration pre-filled.
Where do I dispute a bus lane ticket?
With the council that issued it, in writing, before the due date on the notice — never the Police Infringement Bureau, and never by phone. Auckland Transport: its online infringement portal or post to Auckland Transport Infringement review, Private Bag 92260, Auckland 1142. Wellington City Council: the parking tickets portal (you can view the camera images first). Christchurch: the council's dispute form or parking@ccc.govt.nz. Tauranga: tauranga.govt.nz/contactparking. Paying ends your right to dispute.
Related: appeal an Auckland Transport ticket · appeal a Wellington ticket · appeal a parking ticket, council by council
Sources: Land Transport (Road User) Rule 2004 cl 1.6, 2.3 and 6.6; Land Transport Rule: Traffic Control Devices 2004 cl 3.1 and 11.2; Land Transport (Offences and Penalties) Regulations 1999 Schedule 1; Land Transport Act 1998 ss 128E, 133, 139, 140 and 145; Auckland Transport and Wellington City Council published pages and LGOIMA responses (September 2026). GetMeOff.co.nz provides automated document drafting and general information only — it is not legal advice and no outcome is guaranteed.