5 days ago
Police take photos of distracted drivers from top deck of bus
Thirty two distracted drivers were detected in two hours by police officers deployed on a Bee Network bus as part of a road safety scheme.
Operation Top Deck sees specially trained Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officers boarding a Bee Network bus and using cameras from an elevated position to detect dangerous driving behaviour on key roads during peak periods.
Once offences are captured on camera, GMP's motorcycle unit pulls over drivers to "educate them on their behaviour," and traffic offence reports, and notices of intended prosecution, can be issued.
Dangerous driving behaviour includes the so-called "fatal four" offences- drink and drug driving; distractions such as using a mobile phone behind the wheel, speeding and not wearing seat belts.
During an "Operation Top Deck" deployment on May 13, a total of 32 offences were captured over a two-hour period, according to a spokesperson.
Seventeen people were caught using their mobile phone while driving, there were "seven reports" of people not wearing seat belts, were "seven instances" of a vehicle crossing a solid white line and there was one report relating to a vehicle's number plate.
Dame Sarah Storey, active travel commissioner for Greater Manchester, who attended the recent Operation Top Deck deployment, said: "I'd strongly urge that drivers think twice and ask themselves if making a call or answering a text message is really worth the risk.
"Doing so shows no consideration for their own safety or the safety of their passengers or other road users - and drivers who use their mobile phones while driving are four times more likely to be involved in a crash.
"Seeing Operation Top Deck first-hand has given me a fascinating insight into how Greater Manchester Police enforce the roads while reinforcing their commitment to Vision Zero, our region's ambition to end all deaths and life-changing injuries caused by road traffic collisions by 2040.
"I would encourage anyone who witnesses unsafe driving, and can safely and legally capture footage, to submit it to GMP through the Operation Snap online portal.
"This will be dealt with by the police, which could lead to further action."
Inspector Bradley Ormesher, from GMP's Roads Policing Unit, said: "We are committed to taking direct and positive action to make roads safer across Greater Manchester, and our latest bus-based operation is just one strand of the wider work we are doing.
"Distractions can cost lives and cause serious injury, and we will never take offences lightly where someone is distracted and not fully in control of their vehicle.
"If you are on your phone, not wearing a seatbelt, or driving without due care and attention, you are ultimately breaking the law, and we will take the most appropriate action required.
"Our new operation targets roads at peak times, to allow for maximum impact in our work, and we have already identified dozens of offences when we have been out.
"Driving offences can receive any punishment, from a huge fine, to losing your licence, to potentially spending time behind bars.
"I would urge drivers to think twice before breaking the law."
Operation Top Deck is inspired by National Highways' Operation Tramline, which sees police officers capture footage of dangerous driving from the cabs of heavy goods vehicles.
Since the launch of Operation Tramline in 2015, 51,500 offences have been reported by 35 police forces across the UK, according to a spokesperson.
Last year, more than 3,200 people in Greater Manchester were caught driving while using their phone or not wearing a seat belt properly over a five-week period, as part of a camera trial by Safer Roads Greater Manchester, according to a spokesperson.
To report a dangerous or irresponsible driver, call 101, or 999 in an emergency.
