Thousands of drivers who flout a car ban in Oxford's High Street will soon be caught on camera and automatically fined £30.

Private cars are banned from using the High Street during the day but, as Oxfordshire County Council announced it was bringing in new enforcement cameras, the Oxford Mail counted about 200 cheating motorists driving into the no-car zone in just ONE hour.

A camera is sited by the bus gate in the middle of the street but legislation has not allowed for drivers to be photographed and fined. Only police in patrol cars handing out £30 fines have been able to enforce the rules until now.

But with a change in the law, new cameras will be tested from November and motorists can expect £30 tickets - rising to £60 after two weeks - from February.

David Robertson, the county council's cabinet member for transport, said he was appalled that our survey found so many drivers flouting the ban seven years after it was brought in.

He added: "This shows the cameras need to be introduced as soon as possible and I will be contacting the police to ask them to carry out a blitz.

"Three years ago, we got a visit from a Department of Transport representative who promised us that the relevant legislation would soon be in place, but it has taken a long time to come through.

"Then there was an issue with the specification of the cameras, and finally we had to alert the National Parking Adjudication Service, because this is likely to generate a number of appeals, which will mean more work for them.

"The cameras will be in place for the start of November, and then there will be a period of grace for drivers when the cameras are being tested and they will go live in February."

Cameras will also go up in George Street and Castle Street to enforce regulations restricting access for cars in favour of buses.

Mr Robertson said: "The High Street is one of England's most beautiful streets, and we are trying to restore it to its former glory."

On Friday, Mr Robertson showed Chris Grayling, Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, the changes taking place in High Street.

Two years ago, Oxford Bus Company managers urged the county council to install cameras as soon as possible because they said up to 50 per cent of the traffic was illegal.

Graham Jones, a spokesman for Rox (Rescue Oxford), which was set up to monitor the county council's Oxford Transport Strategy when it was introduced in 1999, said he would be lobbying for concessions for local businesses so they could escape the ban to make deliveries to shops in High Street.