Nearly 300 drivers reported for traffic offences in just four days
Essex Police held four days of action for their Vision Zero
Four days of action by Roads Policing Teams in Essex has resulted in almost 300 drivers being reported for road traffic offences.
The teams were out for four dedicated days this month for Vision Zero.
Vision Zero is Essex Police's ambition to eliminate road deaths in the county by 2040 or sooner by tackling the offences that contribute to killed or seriously injured collisions, known as the Fatal Four, by detecting and tackling those who disregard the law.
This month, they patrolled in Southend, Clacton, Waltham Abbey and Castle Point, and these were the Fatal Four offences that were reported:
• 140 for no seatbelts
• 20 for speeding
• 55 for mobile phone offences
• One arrest for drug driving
Officers are working with the Safer Essex Roads Partnership in their mission to reduce and eliminate road deaths , and hope the offences that have been reported will discourage others from making the same mistakes.
Several of those stopped for seatbelt offences, according to Essex Police, ad teenage children in the back of several cars who were “late for school” or “too hot” to wear them.
Road Crime Operational Manager, Samantha Wright, added:
“We’re quick to catch criminals and my officers are focussed on making roads safe for everyone.
“We’ll continue to hold Vision Zero days across the county. We won’t announce where or when they will be, but we will use them to proactively tackle criminality on our roads and we will continue to target those drivers who place others at risk through poor driving decisions, careless driving or by using unroadworthy vehicles.”
Mr Adam Pipe, Head of Roads Policing said:
“We have more officers in Essex Police than ever before and that means more officers dedicated to tackling crime.
“As a force we have over 700 officers trained to do drug swipe tests at the side of the road, meaning that there are more chances that you will be stopped and tested.
“During Vision Zero days we stopped 14 motorists driving dangerous vehicles: because they are unroadworthy, they could contribute to the driver becoming involved in a collision and injuring their own passengers and others.
“It’s important to make sure that you can clearly see through your windscreen, but 16 drivers were asked to remove tints to their windows because they reduce visibility and could force driver errors, something that can be completely avoided by sticking to legal limits for glass and visibility when using your car.”