Police won’t stop ‘distracted driving kills’ message

Police in Durham said they would not stop “hammering home” the message that drivers should not be on their mobile phones after publishing a photograph of an HGV driver doing just that. The striking image of the man behind the wheel of a 26-tonne lorry travelling on the A1(M) was published by the force on social media and his actions drew criticism from more than 100 members of the public, some of who said he should have been jailed. Durham Constabulary said: “With only one hand on the steering wheel and his attention elsewhere, you can imagine what might have happened.”

He was one of 11 drivers caught during a recent Operation Tramline operation, which relied on officers in an unmarked lorry identifying driving offences from an elevated vantage point. Over the course of four days, police spotted drivers using their mobile phones, reading paperwork, failing to wear seatbelts, and driving under the influence. The force added that the HGV driver and all of the others were pulled over and dealt with by way of a ticket, summons to court, or arrest.

Inspector Kev Salter, of Durham roads and armed policing unit, said: “Distracted driving kills people, and we aren’t going to stop hammering that message home until every driver on our roads understands the weight of that reality.”