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Danger off the road
Page 17
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MORE THAN 20 dangerous trucks have been taken off the road in Cambridgeshire following a series of roadside checks in the county run by the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency .
In one week a total of 24 vehicles were banned after being issued with prohibitions for a number of offences including mechanical defects, using red diesel and running without an operators' licence. Three of the trucks checked were impounded immediately.
Bill Harrison, VOSA's area manager for enforcement in Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire. says: "This was a very effective exercise which resulted in a number of unsafe vehicles being removed from the road.
"This is good news for road safety and for legitimate operators who do not try to break the rules."
Earlier this year VOSA was given the power to stop vehicles for roadside checks to ease the pressure on police and crack down on illegal road users. Previously police officers had to be present during spot checks as only they had the authority to stop vehicles.
More than half the police forces in England and Wales have accreditedVOSA staff within their areas; the remaining forces are expected to sign up to the scheme within the next few months ( CM 5 August).