Cops crackdown on driving offences

Jul 20 2011 by Shona Mitchell, East Kilbride News

TEN drivers were reported to the Procurator Fiscal – and a further 67 were fined – during a week-long police blitz of driving offences.

Traffic cops joined forces with the town’s community officers for the week of action, which targeted roads identified as problem areas by members of the public.

Among those who could now face the court are three drivers whom police believe were drink driving and four drivers who did not have either a licence, insurance or an MOT, as well as a further three motorists who were either speeding or driving carelessly.

Of the 67 fixed penalty notices issued – which lands the driver with a £60 fine and three points on their licence – 34 were for not wearing seatbelts, 13 were for use of a mobile phone, eight were for speeding, two were for no insurance, four ran red lights and one had no MOT.

A further five drivers were issued with warnings for having unroadworthy vehicles.

Inspector Ross Aitken of East Kilbride Police who led the campaign told the News: “As many people may be aware, road safety and road crime is a priority for Strathclyde Police as a whole.

“What these results demonstrate, is that road safety is very much a priority for South Lanarkshire Policing Division. We recognise, through our many consultation processes, that this is important to the people of East Kilbride and Strathaven and we are determined to make their priorities our priorities.

“I am disappointed that many drivers continue to flout the law when they're driving on our roads. Our campaign has caught drink drivers, thoughtless people who risk the lives of others by driving their cars carelessly and those who don't understand or simply don't care about the consequences of driving unroadworthy vehicles.”

He added: “I want to reassure our communities that keeping people safe is what we are about – and this campaign is only one of many activities we will be carrying out locally to make sure that happens.

“I would ask that people help us to make East Kilbride and Strathaven an even safer place to live and work by getting in touch when they have information that would assist us.

“If it’s an emergency, people should continue to call 999. For non-emergency reports, people can contact us locally on 01355 564020 or anonymously using the Crimestoppers number on 0800 555 111.

“Together, I'm sure we can make a difference and we're going to be carrying out another community consultation in the next couple of months to make sure we have an accurate understanding of the priorities our communities want their local community officers to focus on.”