A traffic operation targeting people who use vehicles to commit crimes is reducing offences and helping to keep roads safer.
Nottinghamshire Police teamed up with partner agencies yesterday (1 October 2021) as part of an ongoing drive targeting rogue traders and unroadworthy vehicles in response to concerns raised by Newark residents.
The operation involved officers engaging with people driving trade vehicles, conducting driving document and vehicle safety checks.
Bringing together the Neighbourhood policing team for Newark, Roads Policing Team and members of the Driving Vehicle Standards Agency and Newark and Sherwood District Council.
Yesterday’s operation involved officers and other agencies targeting and clamping down specifically on illegal waste-carrying vehicles and rogue traders to help stop those involved in illicit activity and gain intelligence to help future operations.
During the day-long crackdown, officers spent time in multiple areas across Newark and stopped and seized one transit tipper for having no tax.
Two more vehicles were seized for driving licence offences, one vehicle was seized after being abandoned, two drivers were handed traffic offence reports due to issues with their vehicles and one person was arrested as they were wanted for failing to appear at court.
Officers also engaged with drivers about the use of their vehicle, reasons for being in the area, and the importance of road safety and making sure owners’ vehicles are meeting the correct road worthy standards.
The idea behind the joint agency approach was to help target concerns of the residents of Newark that vehicles such as the ones being targeted were being used for criminal activity.
The operation showed officers that majority of the vehicles on Newark’s streets had all the correct documentation including being taxed and insured.
Sergeant Matthew Ward, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “This traffic operation proved successful in helping reassure resident’s concerns about criminal activity using vehicles in the area.
“Yesterday’s activity targeting different trade vehicles in and around the streets of Newark allowed for a focus not only on vehicles being used to commit crime but also to ensure the correct driving and trade documentation was held as well as engaging with drivers to reiterate the importance of road safety.
“We were pleased that many drivers are correctly documented and were supportive of the activities we were undertaking.
“We intend on completing further operations in the future to ensure standards are maintained and where they are not the appropriate action is taken.
“By taking a joint agency approach we’ve shown that we are committed to targeting those who chose to use their vehicles for criminal activity and that it isn’t just Nottinghamshire Police as a whole who are clamping down on the matter but other agencies as well and that as a force we will use the resources available to us to tackle this matter.
“We will continue to listen to residents’ concerns and target those vehicles which are unsafe and being used for illicit means.”
A Driving Vehicle Standards Agency spokesperson said: “Our priority is to protect everyone from unsafe drivers and vehicles.
“Both drivers and their companies have a responsibility to ensure vehicles are safely loaded and are mechanically sound before beginning every journey.
“We work in partnership with Nottinghamshire Police to ensure that commercial vehicles that travel around town centres and through residential streets are safe and do not pose any danger to the community.”
