ALMOST a quarter of all fines issued by a Bolton Council “spy camera” car have been cancelled.

The £50,000 Smart Car fitted with CCTV to catch rule-breaking drivers in the act has been on the road since November 2009.

Figures obtained by the Bolton News under the Freedom of Information Act show town hall bosses ripped up 788 of the 3,661 tickets that were given to motorists in 2010 as a result of evidence gathered by the car.

The council has admitted some tickets were issued in error and said it cancelled some tickets because drivers were later able to provide evidence of abiding by the rules, such as loading permits.

The 2,764 fines paid, at up to £70 a ticket, could have brought in a potential £193,480 for the authority.

But the tickets cancelled have meant a potential loss of £55,000 of revenue.

Bolton Conservative leader, Cllr John Walsh, said: “I am all for enforcement where it is needed but the council is far too rigorous.

“The council is creating a climate of fear among motorists who are no longer shopping in Bolton in case they get a ticket.

“It’s a stress on people who get tickets and a stress on the economy of Bolton.”

Last year, the council gave a man from the North East a parking ticket even though he had never been to Bolton.

It emerged that staff had taken the wrong vehicle registration plate from unclear Smart Car camera footage.

Marc Gander, the co-founder of Consumer Action Group, which provides people with help with contesting parking tickets as well as other consumer issues, said: “Our experience is that automated parking management, which is what this is, always causes problems.

“There is a huge problem in the use of this Smart Car which the council has a duty to address.”

Of the 325 people given tickets as a result of the car’s evidence for parking in restricted zones near schools, 71 were ripped up.

That is despite the council’s originally reason for introducing the car being to tackle congestion outside schools.

Cllr Walsh said: “Every school I know has problems at peak periods and it is getting worse.

“From the feedback I have been given, the Smart Car has been so ineffective it is effectively useless.”

Bolton Council’s Executive member for environmental services, Cllr Akhtar Zaman, said: “I will take this up to the relevant officers to see what is going on and if something needs doing, we will do it.”

A Bolton Council spokesman added: “With regards to the Smart Car we have voluntarily cancelled a lot of correctly issued tickets, when drivers contact us with mitigating circumstances, such as when an individual presents evidence that their vehicle has broken down or that they were loading.”