Police stop 60 motorists in Wednesbury and West Bromwich in targeted operation
Police have stopped 60 motorists for a number of traffic offences as part of a targeted operation, Sandwell Council said.
As part of a Multi-Agency Road Safety Operation (MARSO) enforcement officers attended looking for vehicles in Wednesbury and West Bromwich that were used to collect scrap and transport waste.
Patrols in West Bromwich investigated 27 vehicles, and 65 untaxed vehicles were identified for investigations by DVLA.
A further 12 traffic offence reports were issued for number plate offences, while five vehicles had illegally dark front window tints, five vehicles were prohibited for dangerous mechanical defects and three vehicles had dangerous or insecure loads.
In Wednesbury, three vehicles were identified as carrying scrap when none of the drivers of the vehicles held Scrap Collectors Licences or Waste Carriers Permits.
One driver was arrested for failing a drug test, and all three vehicles were prohibited from further use by examiners from the DVSA. The drivers were issued with warnings and have been reported to the Environment Agency.
The council's deputy leader and cabinet member for neighbourhoods and community Councillor Suzanne Hartwell said: “We hope that this joint action demonstrates that Sandwell will enforce areas it licenses to keep our people safe.
“As we have seen in our recent #Safer6 campaign, we are prepared to take action against those who don’t play by the rules, or worse, against those who break the law.”
Cabinet member for environment and highways, Councillor Keith Allcock praised the council and police teams for their work, saying: “I’d like to thank our council teams and our partners in Sandwell Police and the DVSA for helping to keep our local roads safe. Last year 1.36 billion vehicle miles were travelled on roads in Sandwell meaning we need to do everything we can to keep people safe, whether on foot or by vehicle.
“Your safety is our number one priority, and the council are committed to reducing the number of fatalities and serious injuries on the roads in Sandwell.
“The ways we ensure this is through education, relying on people to use our roads safely, and as in this successful operation, through trying to catch out wrongdoers.”
