Motorists could face a fine of up to £80 if they drive in bus lanes in Brighton and Hove.

In a pilot project, the city council would be given powers to set up speed cameras in bus lanes or on the back of buses.

At present, only the police can hand out fines to drivers who try to dodge jams by using bus lanes.

Motorists routinely escape punishment unless an officer happens to catch them in the act.

Speed cameras are already allowed in bus lanes and on buses in London, where transport chiefs say they have succeeded in speeding up bus journeys.

The Department of Transport has now nominated 54 "approved authorities", including Brighton and Hove, which will be invited to extend the scheme across England.

Hastings Borough Council has also been nominated.

The head of the traffic management division has written to both councils asking for its views on the initiative, and the level of fines, by September 6.

In London, drivers are fined £80 for entering a bus lane, twice the £40 penalty imposed by the city council for a parking offence.

The fine would be halved for drivers who paid within 14 days but it could be doubled for anyone failing to pay within 28 days.

Wide-angle cameras would allow council chiefs to judge whether a driver had no choice but to swerve into a bus lane, perhaps to avoid a broken down car.

The fine wouldtypically fall on the owner of the vehicle rather than the driver because of the difficulty of identifying motorists.

A Department of Transport spokesman said the purpose of bus lanes was "frustrated" if drivers believed they could get away with using them.

He said: "For bus lanes to work properly, there must be movement of the greatest number of people in the shortest time - and that means on buses.

"Having cameras in bus lanes and on buses will ensure other drivers don't abuse the lanes and slow buses down."

The fines could be brought in before the end of the year as the necessary legislation is already in place through the Transport Act of 2000.

Roger French, managing director of Brighton and Hove Bus and Coach company, said: "This is brilliant news.

"We have a good network of bus lanes in the city and in Western road, Dyke Road and North Street they are widely abused, especially at the moment with roadworks on the seafront.

"It is a nightmare for bus drivers when other vehicles get into the lanes and we look forward to an early crackdown on illegal motorists.

"It would be for the benefit of thousands of people who use the buses."

Mr French said all Brighton and Hove buses would soon have cameras that could be used to picture illegal entry into the bus lanes.

He said: "We are only too keen to co-operate and make use of the cameras for this purpose."

Councillor Chris Morley, who chairs the city council's environment committee, said: "We are pleased to have been chosen to carry out this trial."

There were problems with illegal use of bus lanes by motorists undermining the benefits of bus priority measures.

He said: "These new powers, if granted, would allow us to tackle these problems."