Motorists travelling on Britain's motorway network should be aware that not all the lorries they overtake are exactly what they seem.
National Highways yesterday (July 15) revealed that officers have been patrolling the M6 in unmarked HGV cabs for a week of action aimed at catching drivers who are not obeying the rules of the road. It said that more than 400 vehicles were stopped and 387 offences recorded during the clampdown.
Officers caught 98 drivers using their mobile phone illegally at the wheel and 100 people not wearing a seatbelt during the operation tagged Operation Vertebrae. In total, 412 vehicles were stopped by police using the unmarked cabs that included 180 HGVs and 122 private vehicles.
Among the vehicles stopped was a lorry with six defective tyres and an excess load of 15 tonnes. Lancashire Police reported the driver for the traffic offences and the HGV was taken off the road. Other action taken ranged from words of advice or fixed penalty notices to traffic offences being reported and six arrests.
Jeremy Phillips, head of road safety for National Highways, said: “Our goal, through exercises such as Operation Vertebrae is to make our roads safer whether that is by encouraging motorists to consider their driving behaviour or ensuring those that put people at risk are fully aware that they can be spotted and will be dealt with by our enforcement partners.
“It is always disappointing when we learn of drivers putting themselves and others at risk through unsafe driving such as using a mobile phone at the wheel. But through this week of action police were able to identify almost 400 offences and halt drivers who could have caused collisions and harm if they hadn’t been pulled over.”
The unmarked HGV cabs are offered to police forces across the country throughout the year as part of Operation Tramline, which was launched in 2015. More than 29,000 offences have been recorded to date by officers in the HGVs.
National Highways recently released footage of one driver caught using his mobile phone as he drove along the A500 in Stoke-on-Trent. The driver was seen with his phone in one hand and a drink in the other before taking both hands completely off the wheel to put down his drink and move the phone back to his right hand.
In a second clip, a lorry driver had both of his hands in a tobacco pouch and rolled a cigarette as he drove along the M40 in Warwickshire before looking over to see the camera rolling in the HGV next to him.
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