Transport for London (TfL) has successfully prosecuted Vodafone for the second time this year as part of its commitment to ensure that road works cause as little disruption as possible to road users.

Vodafone’s offences, which took place between February and March this year, include working without a permit in Borough High Street and failing to serve the required streetworks notices before starting work at St Thomas Street in Southwark, Loampit Vale in Lewisham and Bishopsgate in the City of London. The telecommunications giant failed to pay the Fixed Penalty Notices issued by TfL in response to these offences.

Ahead of a hearing at Westminster Magistrates Court on Wednesday (September 28), Vodafone pleaded guilty to the offences and the company was fined a total of £3,500 and ordered to pay prosecution costs of £3,020.

Garrett Emmerson, TfL’s chief operating officer for Surface Transport, said: “These offences prevent us from coordinating streetworks effectively and we will continue to push for the toughest penalties possible against telecommunications and other companies caught acting unlawfully.

“We are committed to keeping London’s roads as clear as possible to prevent unnecessary disruption to journeys and to help us tackle poor air quality.”

Since January 2015, TfL has prosecuted Vodafone on three occasions and issued the company with 78 Fixed Penalty Notices, 33 of which were within the last year.

In June, it was prosecuted for failing to serve a required statutory Streetworks notice for work in Tooting Bec on January 7 and 8, 2016.

Including this latest offence, the company has been ordered to pay a total of £12,706 in fines for mismanaging streetworks since 2015.

Utility companies prosecuted by TfL since 2010

Company

Number of  prosecutions

Percentage of total prosecutions

  
 

British Telecom

38

35%

  

Thames Water

13

12%

  

Infocus

11

10%

  

Virgin Media

10

9%

  

Fulcrum

9

8%

  

UK Power Networks/London Power Networks

9

8%

  

Vodafone

7

6%

 

National Grid Gas

5

5%

  

Cable & Wireless

3

3%

  

Abovenet

2

2%

 

McNicholas (on behalf of Virgin Media)

1

1%

  

O2

1

1%

  
 

109

100%