About this bus lane
The western of two separate inbound bus lanes on the A4 London Road — the other is at Cemetery Junction, either side of St Bartholomews Road, and is listed on this site as its own entry. This one covers two stretches of the nearside lane: from about 20 metres west of Crown Place for a further 47 metres, and from the Kendrick Road junction for about 140 metres west.
It runs at all times — the Order that creates it sets no days or hours, so there is no off-peak window. Buses, pedal cycles, motorcycles and licensed Hackney Carriages may use it; private hire vehicles and minicabs may not, because the Order’s "Authorised Vehicles" means a Hackney Carriage only.
"Bus" is defined broadly and takes in ReadiBus, patient transport services and licensed school buses as well as ordinary service buses. Motorcycles were let in experimentally from 13 September 2024 and made permanent on 3 March 2026.
There is no camera on this stretch: Reading Borough Council listed all 48 of its camera-enforced bus lane segments in response to a freedom of information request in July 2026 and this one is not among them, so the council does not issue bus lane penalty charge notices here. The restriction is still in force and the police retain their powers, so it is not a lane you may drive in.
Emergency services on duty, vehicles clearing an obstruction or being repaired in the lane, utility and council vehicles working on the street, refuse and road-cleansing vehicles, and Royal Mail vans serving adjacent premises are all separately exempt, as is briefly crossing the white line to reach off-street premises that can only be entered from the lane.
Transcribed from The Borough of Reading (Bus Lanes) (Bus Services Improvement) Order 2024, Articles 7 and 8 and the Schedule, in force 15 August 2024, as varied by The Borough of Reading (Bus Lanes) (Bus Services Improvement) Variation Order 2026, in force 3 March 2026.
Who can use it
- Buses
- Pedal cycles
- Motorcycles
- Hackney carriage taxis
Not permitted
- Cars
- Vans
- Lorries
- Private hire vehicles
Where exactly is it?
London Road (A4) inbound, in the nearside lane near Crown Place and west of Kendrick Road, Reading. View on Google Maps →
Got a PCN here?
Reading Borough Council's own list of camera-enforced sites does not include this one, so a camera PCN from this location would be unexpected — check the notice carefully and make sure it names the road you were actually on. If it does, it is still £70, reduced to £35 within 21 days, and our step-by-step appeal guide covers the grounds that actually win. The restriction itself is not optional: the traffic order is in force and the police keep their own power to act.
Frequently asked questions
What are the operating times of the London Road bus lane?
The London Road (Crown Place and Kendrick Road) Bus Lane in Reading operates at any time. There is no time of day when general traffic may use it.
How much is the fine for driving through the London Road bus lane?
Reading Borough Council issues a Penalty Charge Notice of £70, reduced to £35 if paid within 21 days. There are no penalty points — it is a civil penalty.
Who is allowed to use the London Road bus lane?
Buses, pedal cycles, motorcycles and hackney carriage taxis are permitted. Not permitted: cars, vans, lorries and private hire vehicles.
Can I appeal a PCN from the London Road bus lane?
Yes, and it costs nothing. Make formal representations to Reading Borough Council first — the authority that issued the PCN has to consider them before it can enforce the penalty. If Reading Borough Council rejects them it must issue a Notice of Rejection, and you can then appeal free to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. Its adjudicators are lawyers independent of the enforcing authority, and their decision is binding on both sides. This bus lane operates 24 hours, so "I was outside the operating times" is not open to you — the grounds that win here are that your vehicle was exempt, that the details on the PCN are wrong, or that the signage did not make the restriction clear. It is worth doing: Reading Borough Council accepted 22% of the 8,297 formal challenges it received in 2023/24, and of the 127 that went on to the tribunal, 10 succeeded (figures from its own FOI response). Note that paying the £35 discounted rate accepts liability and closes the case, so challenge before you pay.