Police get country's best results with motorway stealth tactics

Effective: Police have prosecuted more offenders than colleagues elsewhereEffective: Police have prosecuted more offenders than colleagues elsewhere
Effective: Police have prosecuted more offenders than colleagues elsewhere
TRAFFIC police in South Yorkshire have proved the most effective in the country for prosecuting motorists with evidence gained by using an unmarked lorry to monitor driver behaviour.

Last year 1,128 people were prosecuted as a result of evidence gathered by police using the lorry tractor unit, which is owned by Highways England and loaned out to forces nationally.

The police success last year compares to neighbouring West Yorkshire - a larger force - which had 228 prosecutions.

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Sussex was the second most successful, brining 882 drivers to book.

The lorry cab gives officers the elevated position needed to monitor the activities of other truckers using the region’s motorways.

It also provides a clear line of vision into smaller vehicles below cab-height on the roads.

Roads Policing Officer PC Rod McEnery, who organises and leads the use of the HGV cab said: “Every time the HGV cab becomes available, we grab the chance to use it; it’s a great asset to our tactics in creating safer roads.

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“You can’t measure education or prevention and we’ll never know whether the drivers we have stopped and prosecuted change their behaviour, but we like to think next time they are driving in an illegal and dangerous way, they think about other people and the fact they could kill themselves or an innocent person.

“The HGV allows us to see inside lorries and larger vehicles, and during my time leading this operation, I have seen some shocking driving, driving that could kill you, kill your family, your friends, or mine.

“I have witnessed drivers with no hands on the wheel trimming their beards, watching TV, steering their vehicles with their knees and on their mobile phones.

“We are often met with criticism, saying we are targeting lorry drivers, but it must be acknowledged that these vehicles pose a greater danger with their size and weight.

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“Drivers of these vehicles must accept that responsibly and not pose further risks with dangerous behaviour.

“It’s not just those in larger vehicles that we prosecute, the cab also provides a vantage point into cars.

“All these acts can kill. Everyone has a part to play in keeping our roads safe. Give the road your full attention.”

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