Police caught 22 motorists during the first promised 'bus-lane blitz' in the city.

Drivers failed to see officers in fluorescent jackets manning the checkpoint -- and some even admitted having read about the threatened crackdown in the Oxford Mail.

The drivers were stopped after cutting into the bus-lane on the Oxford-Kidlington road as they approached the Cutteslowe roundabout.

But waiting for them were the traffic officers, who pulled in the 22 offenders in an hour. All were handed £30 penalty tickets.

The spot checks are being carried out throughout September in a number of problem areas, including the A40 approach to the Green Road roundabout at Headington and in Botley Road.

The crackdown follows an avalanche of complaints from bus operators about motorists usingpriority lanes, particularly during the morning and evening rush hours.