More than 200 speeders spilled on to Parliament Street yesterday afternoon while waiting to be called in traffic court.

They were among some 540 who were summoned to court yesterday, but several did not appear and warrants were issued for their arrest.

Nerves were short as people stood in the hot sun and irate Police officers shouted for order.

And when the doors of Magistrates' Court opened at 2:30 p.m., most waited at least an hour -- some more -- for their chance to enter a plea.

Overflow has become routine for traffic court's Thursday afternoon session.

One man who was fined $210 for travelling at 57 kph was forced to wait almost two hours to pay his fine.

"I could have come in and paid my fine right away,'' he said.

"I have my business that I need to attend to. They have got to do something about this.

"They should pay us for the time we have spent in here.'' Another man branded the situation as "deplorable'' and "ridiculous''.

At least 20 Police officers were on hand to manage the situation, which occupied all three courtrooms.

Senior Magistrate Will Francis, Magistrate Edward King and Family Court Magistrate Carlisle Graves faced the slew of offenders.

The courtrooms swelled beyond capacity as defendants were even forced to stand or wait outside in the corridor.

And Mr. Francis lashed out at the circumstances, saying that he would be there until 6 p.m. if defendants kept on having to be called in from outside.

The last session finally wrapped up just after 4.30 p.m. But the long waits did not end in the courtroom.

Lines extended from the two cashier desks with people waiting to pay their fines.

And computer glitches only aggravated the situation.

Mr. Francis acknowledged the backlog problem and said plans were in the works to relieve traffic court congestion.

He said a small change in the law could greatly improve the efficiency of the whole process.

"Some members of Parliament are trying to rectify this by making the law such that people who have sped under 60 kph will not be required to come to court,'' he said.

The current legislation dictates that anyone caught travelling above speeds of 54 kph must appear in court.

Most of yesterday's alleged speeders were pulled over for speeds below 60 kph.

"The backlog is a fairly regular occurrence right now, and it slows up other work,'' Mr. Francis said.

"We have to adjourn other matters to deal with this sort of thing.'' But he did not know when new laws would be put in place and changes are sure to meet heavy opposition from the Bermuda Road Safety Council, which suggests more traffic court sessions instead.

While Government coffers stand to swell by tens of thousands of dollars if fines are paid, many offenders require some time before they can come up with the cash.

Although the average fine is between $200 and $300, Mr. Francis fined one man $600 for speeding at 85 kph and imposed a driving ban for two years.