Over 200 driving violations recorded by Surrey Police in covert operation
Officers from the Surrey and Sussex Roads Policing and Commercial Vehicle Unit made a total of 247 interventions on the M25 last month, after a covert road safety campaign.
The unit used an unmarked HGV lorry from National Highways, as well as unmarked police cars, to catch those committing offences that included mobile phone use, not wearing a seatbelt and multi-tasking whilst behind the wheel.
196 stops were made in total and 240 offences identified between 18 and 24 July, with roughly one third (36%) for mobile phone use and another third (33%) for not wearing a seatbelt.
16 drivers were summonsed to court and a staggering 145 traffic offence reports were recorded as a result of the covert campaign.
Chief Inspector Michael Hodder from the Roads Policing Unit, said: “We regularly carry out these targeted operations alongside our usual roads policing operations, and we are disappointed each time to see just how many people are still committing basic driving offences despite knowing the dangers.
“I would like to thank all Surrey and Sussex Officers who work tirelessly all year round to make our roads safer for everyone. Each intervention is a chance to prevent a devastating collision, protect a life and make a careless driver think twice.
“To those who continue to offend on our roads – please remember that next time you commit an offence, we might not be everywhere, but we could be anywhere.”