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Almost half of HGVs stopped were committing offences'
Page 8
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By David Harris and Joanna Bourke EARLY HALF THE trucks ;topped by police in a November ;ling in Devon and Cornwall were :ommitting offences, reveal police.
Operation Fatigue saw 368 71GVs stopped and 161 offences )rocessed by police. Of these, 107 vere issued with Graduated Fixed 'enalties (GFPs) for running overveight; 10 drivers had points put ri their licences for offences that ncluded speeding and using a nobile phone while driving; 22 rucks were given mechanical nohibitions; nine prohibitions vcre issued for excessive drivers hours; and 14 were given out for hazardous cargo infringements.
Police involved in the operation, which ran from 2 November to 26 November, say they were quite surprised at the high number of offences, and that the plan is to repeat the crackdown next year.
A spokesman says: "In terms of numbers, we were a taken aback that nearly every other vehicle was committing an offence, but it was a very successful operation."
The GFPs were "mostly" issued to foreign drivers.
The police say that one reason they decided to set up Operation Fatigue is that HG Vs are involved in 9% of fatal collisions, although they make up only 3% of traffic.
A police statement before the operation began said that hauliers' profit margins are so tight that some are prepared to compromise on safety to increase profits. The police believe that similar money-saving efforts can result in some hauliers being prepared to cut corners in other areas too, such as using drivers without special training to drive hazardous cargoes.
• Graduated Fixed Penalties (GFPs) worth £780 were issued during on-the-spot inspections of 51 HGVs by Essex Police.
As part of the police-led Operation Mermaid, assisted by VOSA, on 12 December at North Weald, 51 trucks were stopped, and of these, seven were seized for no insurance or no driving licence.
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