Motorists caught watching videos behind the wheel during police crackdown on unsafe motorway driving - The Rugby Observer

Motorists caught watching videos behind the wheel during police crackdown on unsafe motorway driving

Rugby Editorial 4th Feb, 2022   0

MOTORISTS caught watching videos behind the wheel were among over 100 drivers stopped on the M1 last week (January 24-28) as part of a joint police crackdown on poor motorway driving in Northamptonshire and Leicestershire.

Officers from Northamptonshire Police’s Safer Roads Team joined colleagues from Leicestershire Police, using an unmarked HGV to spot driving offences between junctions 16 and 22 of the motorway.

The patrols were part of National Highways’ Operation Tramline, which aims to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured on motorways.

Officers used the unmarked HGV to film evidence of unsafe driving by pulling alongside vehicles. Drivers seen committing an offence were then stopped by an unmarked police car following a short distance behind.




A total of 105 offences were detected across both counties, the majority of which were for not wearing a seatbelt.

A further 15 drivers were stopped for using a mobile phone while driving, and nine others were considered not to be in proper control of their vehicle.


Two vehicles were seized for no insurance, while a further 15 motorists were stopped for other offences including watching videos while driving.

The offenders will be given the chance to take an online education course if eligible, receive a fixed penalty fine, or go to court.

PC Dave Lee of Northamptonshire Police’s Safer Roads Team said: “Reducing the number of people killed or seriously injured on our roads remains our priority, and so it is always disappointing to witness drivers breaking the law.

“As a result of Operation Tramline, the chances of getting caught have increased, which can only be a good thing, and will hopefully encourage those who continue to put lives in danger, to re-consider their driving behaviour.

“To hold a driving licence is a privilege and a responsibility, especially those driving commercial vehicles, and we will continue to work with our partners to take a strong and robust approach to improve road safety.”

Sgt Steve Jackson from Leicestershire Police’s Roads Policing Unit (RPU) said: “We worked – and will continue to work – with our colleagues from Northamptonshire Police and National Highways to improve road safety.

“The HGV is a useful tool provided to us by National Highways to improve road safety across the board. It allows us to identify more offences being committed and deal with those responsible robustly.

“Ultimately, our aim is to take action in order to reduce the number of casualties on our roads.”

National Highways Assistant Regional Safety Co-ordinator Marie Biddulph said: “We believe nobody should be harmed while travelling or working on our network and work tirelessly with our police partners to try to achieve that goal.

“Through Operation Tramline, we want to make our roads are as safe as they can be by making people think twice about their driving behaviour.

“We want that small minority of people who continue to flout the law to know that officers patrolling in our unmarked HGV can spot them whether they are on the phone, not wearing a seatbelt or committing any other offence that puts both themselves and others at risk.”

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