Crackdown on danger riders

A police crackdown aimed at cutting the number of motorcyclists killed or seriously injured on Staffordshire roads has been hailed a massive success.

Marked and unmarked police cars and bikes, safety camera vehicles and the police helicopter were all drafted to take part in Operation Octane. The blitz targeted riders who endanger themselves and others by taking unnecessary risks. Emergency services recorded no deaths or serious injuries on the county's roads over the period of the operation.

It took place over the traditionally busy bank holiday weekend at the end of May.

A total of 146 riders were pulled over and given road safety advice and information, including an invitation to do advanced training to improve their skills.

Officers issued nine fixed penalty notices and some riders were caught for offences including no insurance, drink-driving and riding while disqualified.

Councillor Carol Dean, Staffordshire County Council's cabinet member for road safety, said the biker community really had taken notice."The campaign targeted bad rider behaviour in an effort to nip their foolhardiness in the bud before it cut short their lives," she said.

"It's great that, thanks to bikers heeding the message, we made sure there were no tragic deaths over the bank holiday. That's what it is all about.

"Last year, 82 bikers were killed or seriously injured. That's over one quarter of all those seriously injured on our roads, despite the fact they represent only one per cent of road users.

"Our campaign continues unabated all year round, with training for bikers, biker events, high priority signage, warnings along the network of high-risk routes, education, campaigning and of course enforcement."

Les Dyble, traffic management officer for Staffordshire Police, said the operation had been a massive success.

"Working together has really made an impact. Those riders who were caught behaving badly can now learn from their mistakes. All too often it ends in much more than tears."