DANGEROUS, selfish and lazy motorists have been caught by Warwickshire Police committing various driving offences during an operation on the M6.
During a recent week of action by police and National Highways tagged ‘Operation Vertebrae’, officers in unmarked HGV cabs patrolling the M6 in Warwickshire spotted 123 offences – including 63 people not wearing a seatbelt and 19 using a mobile phone.
Among the vehicles stopped in the county were two vans driven by disqualified drivers, and a vehicle stolen in a car-jacking that was being driven on false plates. The driver was arrested.
National Highways also released footage of a lorry driver on the M40 in Warwickshire who was driving without his hands on the wheel as he rolled a cigarette, before looking over to see the camera rolling in the HGV next to him.
Action taken ranged from words of advice or fixed penalty notices to traffic offences being reported and offenders being arrested.
Sgt Shaun Bridle of Warwickshire Police said: “These results will drive our hardworking and dedicated officers to continue to conduct as many commercial vehicle enforcement operations as possible in Warwickshire to protect innocent road users.
“It seems that not only are some drivers willing to risk their own lives and the lives of others by driving vehicles in a poor and dangerous condition, they are also travelling at speeds of up to 70mph on the M6 whilst being distracted by a mobile phone or not wearing a seatbelt. In these circumstances a collision would almost certainly be fatal to the driver and the consequences for other innocent road users do not bear thinking about.
“The excuses given to our officers for not wearing a seatbelt include ‘sorry I forgot‘ and overall those not wearing a seatbelt seem to be simply lazy or display a lack of concern. In 2022 this is not ok. Road safety is everyone’s responsibility and drivers and businesses must do everything they can to keep everyone safe on our roads.
“We have just announced a new partnership with National Highways Driving for Better Business programme and are calling on all fleet managers to play your part in improving road safety by signing up to the programme to protect employees and make our county’s roads safer for everyone.”
The unmarked HGV cabs are loaned to police forces across the country throughout the year as part of Operation Tramline, which was launched in 2015 by National Highways, then Highways England. Over 29,000 offences have been recorded to date by officers in the HGVs since the national safety initiative began.
Visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Hn9d0yaTIs to watch the clip of the lorry driver on the M40 in Warwickshire.
