M5 lorry driver caught rolling cigarette with no hands on wheel

A total of 58 drivers were pulled over on the M5 during Operation Tramline, a campaign led by Policing officers in the South West last month. The road safety initiative in Gloucestershire was designed to educate drivers and cut down the number of incidents caused by unsafe driving behaviour or distractions such as mobile phone use, not wearing a seat belt or carrying insecure loads. The operation utilised an unmarked HGV lorry - borrowed from National Highways - which patrolled between junctions eight and 14 of the motorway.

This provided officers with a vantage point to spot a variety of offences.

Among those caught flouting the law was an HGV driver who was spotted rolling a cigarette with no hands on the wheel, and a tow truck operator whose vehicle had several defects including non-functioning brakes. Additional problems with the tow truck included tyre cuts, bald tyres, cracked suspension springs and an insecure load, as reports Gloucestershire Live[1]. A prohibition notice was issued to the driver as the vehicle was not roadworthy and could have put other motorists on the road at risk.

Police also stopped two motorists for towing vehicles while in the third lane of the motorway, a move that contravenes rule 265 of the Highway Code.

Officers who spotted a driver committing an offence recorded video footage from the unmarked lorry cab before alerting colleagues in a following car. These officers then intercepted the offending vehicle, pulled it over and dealt with the driver. The offences were dealt with through Traffic Offence Reports (TORs) and summons, which could lead to fines of GBP100 for not wearing a seat belt, GBP200 and six points on the licence for using a handheld mobile device while driving, and a GBP300 fine for driving in contravention of a prohibition.

Driving whilst disqualified can incur a hefty fine of up to GBP5,000 and potentially land offenders in prison for up to six months. Sergeant Matt Firth from the Roads Policing Unit emphasised: "Reducing the numbers of people killed or seriously injured on our roads continues to be a priority for Gloucestershire Constabulary. "We will continue to run these operations to detect and deter those who choose to drive in this manner, remembering that any of us or our loved ones could be impacted by such behaviours whilst using the county's roads."

This decade-long initiative was launched to slash the toll of fatalities and serious injuries on the National Highways road network, including motorways and major trunk roads.

National Highways supports this mission by providing three unmarked HGV cabs to police forces nationwide as part of Operation Tramline. Jack Mason, Engineering Team Manager for National Highways Road Safety, stated: "Figures show that you're twice as likely to die in a crash if you don't wear a seat belt and four times more likely to be in a crash if using a phone at the wheel. So it is always disappointing when we see people who are prepared to put themselves and others at risk in this way.

"This year marks the 10th anniversary of Operation Tramline and our goal has always been to remind motorists to think carefully about their driving behaviours and to make our roads safer.

"These results show just how valuable our HGV cabs continue to be in helping to spot unsafe driving behaviours and we will continue working with our police partners to make our roads as safe as we can."

References

1. ^ Gloucestershire Live (www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk)