Vehicles stopped in safety clampdown

Over 100 vehicles were stopped as part of an operation to ensure the safety of schoolchildren in Denbighshire and Flintshire.
 

On Tuesday, 15^th January officers from North Wales Police, Denbighshire and Flintshire County Councils and VOSA worked in partnership on Operation Coachman – a national operation aimed at checking the roadworthiness of vehicles used to transport children to and from school.
 

The vehicles stopped included taxis, minibuses, coaches, buses as well as ordinary vehicles belonging to members of the public.
 

During the operation whereby a total of 106 vehicles were stopped, two immediate suspensions, six deferred warning notices, four immediate prohibitions and one delayed prohibition were given. These were for a variety of offences including the general maintenance of the vehicles, health and safety requirements, fuel leak, defective tyres and a hazardous step on a double-decker bus.
 

Fixed Penalty Notices were also given regarding mobile phone and seatbelt offences and ten bylaw offences for vehicle general maintenance matters.
 

Sergeant Emlyn Hughes said: “It is disappointing that drivers with the responsibility for transporting children don’t spend their time checking their vehicles are roadworthy before use.
 

“We want to ensure that children have a safe journey to and from school and I would urge all drivers to carry out simple checks ahead of their journey, such as checks on lights, brakes and tyres.”
 

Further checks across the region’s counties will continue.


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