Thousands of cars were checked in a traffic operation aimed at taking travelling thieves off the roads.
A team of more than 20 police officers mounted Operation Redcarpet during the weekend, which saw checkpoints set up around one of the busiest routes through the region.

Cars which passed through the monitors around Dalton Park, off the A19 at Murton, had their number plates scanned by automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) systems.

Any cars which were flagged up by the equipment were then pulled over and checked.

Two thousand cars passed through the posts on Saturday, triggering the ANPR equipment 181 times, with a further 126 alerts recorded yesterday as a further 1,500 vehicles passed through the locations.

Inquiries led to six cars seized for being driven without insurance and other motoring offences, including driving without a licence.

One man was arrested for driving while disqualified.

A spokesman for Durham Constabulary said: “This was launched to target travelling criminals who strike on the coast of East Durham, and Seaham in particular, and aimed to reassure retailers and shoppers in the area that there are efforts by police to make is a safe place to visit and work.”

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A driving test candidate had his test cancelled after an examiner refused to sit in the car, saying it was too dirty.

Mr Hyde arrived at the Oxford Driving Test Centre in his father’s five year old Volkswagen Golf, but the examiner failed to even set foot in the car due to croissant crumbs on the seat.

Mr Hyde said: “I turned up and everything was normal. Then as soon as the examiner opened the passenger door, he said “I can’t take you out in this’

“I couldn’t believe it. He said he came to work in suit trousers and expected to sit on a tidy seat.

“It’s really annoying. He could have at least given us five minutes to clean it, but there was just no negotiation.

A Driving Standards Agency spokesman said: “If the candidate makes a complaint or asks for a refund, we’ll look into it when we receive it.”

Simon Bush of Britannia Driving School said: “First impressions in all walks of life are very important and especially when taking the driving test. Be well dressed and groomed. The appearance of you and your vehicle make a greater impression than anything you say, and are crucial. Remember: there is no second chance to make a first impression.” 

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More than 1,500 motorists were stopped and breathalysed in Nottinghamshire as part of a month-long drink-driving crackdown.

Of the 1,507 checked, 139 people tested positive, or refused or failed to provide a sample to see if they were over the legal alcohol limit.

The scheme, part of the national summer campaign throughout June, saw drivers or bikers suspected of driving under the influence of drink or drugs stopped at the roadside, and extrad patrols on main roads.

Chief Insp Andy Charlton, head of Nottinghamshire Police’s roads policing unit, said: “It is still extremely disappointing to find people continue to drink alcohol and drive.

“Not only do they face a fine and the possibility of losing their licence, but it also significantly increases the chances of killing or seriously injuring someone – even themselves.”

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Despite a move to introduce pay as you drive motoring being shot down in flames by UK motorists only 2 years ago it looks as though this particular policy may well be back on the agenda. Citing the fact that motorists no longer believe the government when it introduces tax rises for motorists in the name of “the green revolution” there is a push to put pay as you drive motoring back on the agenda.

While there is a valid reason for disputing the UK government’s handling of various tax increases in connection with motorists in the UK, there are grave concerns that by introducing pay-as-you-go motoring this will give the government an easy opportunity to increase the charges year-on-year. At least with the road tax you know exactly what you are paying for the next 12 months, even though the duty on petrol does fluctuate. Would you rather the government introduce an initial low pay-as-you-go mileage charge then increase this in the years to come, again in the name of “the green revolution”?

While there may be some new support for pay-as-you-go driving there is a danger that motorists will make it much easier for the government to increase charges in the future citing the fact that motorists are in control of the number of miles they travel each year.

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More than 14 per cent of learner drivers now fail the Show Me, Tell Me, part of the practical driving test that was introduced in 2003.

It would seem that many learners are not getting proper training before taking the driving test for practical questions such as “Open the bonnet, identify where you would check that the engine has sufficient oil?”

Parents are being blamed for the failures as professional driving instructors teach the “Show me, Tell me” in their syllabus.

Simon Bush of Britannia Driving School said: “In the show me, Tell me part of the test, learner drivers are asked to identify various parts of the engine and to demonstrate how they would carry out basic checks and maintenance. In the L-test only one driving fault is allocated to this section of the test. All the latest “show me, Tell me” question and answers are listed on this website.” 

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Despite paying billions in road taxes, British drivers believe not enough care is being taken of the nation’s roads.
While news that a majority of UK motorists are unhappy with the amount of road tax they pay is unlikely to come as a shock to anyone, the extent to which disaffection is growing among the nation’s drivers is still somewhat surprising.

According to the latest research, around four in five Britons believe that they are paying over-the-odds for getting behind the wheel, with high road tax rates exacerbated by added costs such as car insurance, high fuel prices and even road tolls.
At the same time, a similar proportion are even more frustrated as they fail to see where their money is being spent, with many convinced that the state of British roads is deteriorating despite the millions being generated for the Treasury.

While it could be argued that motorists are often only too happy to play the victim card and believe that they are being unfairly persecuted by those in power, in this instance the pessimists may have a point, with the motoring group estimating that around £45 billion worth of road taxes are paid each year across the UK and of this just one-sixth is ploughed back into the national transport infrastructure.

Notably, 82 per cent of those drivers polled said that they felt the quality of roads is deteriorating, representing a 14 per cent increase on the 2008 study, while many also feel that speed cameras are little more than cash-generating machines for local councils and police forces.

At the same time, motoring groups in America are mooting the idea of introducing varying rates of road tax, dependent upon how heavy – and therefore how damaging to a surface – a vehicle is.

The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) has delivered a stark warning to any Approved Driving Instructor (ADI) who engages in fraudulent practices by misusing their status of responsibility.

ADI Peter Cyril Groombridge, 72, of South West London was today sentenced at Inner London Crown Court to 10 months imprisonment for encouraging four illegal instructors to provide driving tuition to candidates through his company ‘Professional Driving School.’

It is illegal to receive money or money’s worth in exchange for driving tuition unless you are a qualified, registered ADI.

Early suspicions were raised when a DSA test centre staff member expressed concerns that illegal instructors were presenting candidates for test.

Bogus instructors, Edward Asare Afriyie, 58, of Peckham, George Ferreira Cabral, 35, of South West London, Ali Mazhar Mirza, 74, of South East London and Astley Hasten Davis, 73 of South East London received a combined fine of £2,580 for their illegal activity.

The DSA’s driving instructor Registrar, Charles Morton said: “The DSA message is clear: if you are not an ADI qualified to teach learner drivers, but continue teaching for money or moneys worth, you can expect to face ever increasing penalties.

“Illegal instructors are a danger to the public. They have not been assessed by us to ensure they are able to provide driving instruction to required standards.

“It is very simple to check that a driving instructor is qualified. Ensure they display an in-date pink or green badge in their windscreen during lessons and that the photo on the badge matches the person providing the instruction. The pink badge indicates that they have trainee status and are entitled to give paid instruction whilst acquiring practical experience. The green badge indicates their name is in The Register of Approved Driving Instructors, they are fully qualified to give paid instruction and are subject to regular checks by DSA to ensure their continued competence and suitability to give instruction”.

The head of the DSA Fraud and Integrity Team, Andy Rice added: “We investigate all reported cases of suspected illegal instruction and work closely with the police and criminal justice agencies to identify offenders and prosecute”.

Drivers will be offered subsidies of up to £5,000 to help them to purchase electric or plug in hybrid cars under plans announced by the government.

It’s part of a plan to promote low carbon transport over the next five years.

The strategy includes plans to provide £20m for charging points and other necessary infrastructure. At present they are very limited.

Currently sales of hybrid vehicles has been held back by a number of factors: They commonly have a limited range of about 40 miles, take several hours to charge, and have only two seats.

But the government hopes to target drivers of a new generation of all electric or plug in petrol electric cars, which are expected to go on sale in two years time.

Business Secretary Lord Mandelson said:  “When people see the electric car – the speed, the lack of noise – they are going to fall in love with it.”

Environmental campaigners Friends of the Earth said financial support for electric cars was a step in the right direction but said investment in public transport was also needed.

Simon Bush of Britannia Driving School said: “The big problem is that the next generation of electric cars will initially be very expensive to make. Without subsidies, nobody will buy them, so manufacturers won’t be able to increase production and get the price down.”

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Almost a third of 45 to 64-year-olds admitted to driving while potentially over the drink-drive limit compared with only 24% of 17 to 24-year-olds, its survey found.

However, more than a quarter of 17 to 24-year-olds occasionally send text messages while at the wheel, with 5% being frequent texters.

And one in four of these young drivers have been in a car when they believed the person at the wheel was under the influence of drugs, while 10% of 17 to 24-year-olds admitted being under the influence of drugs themselves while driving.

“Younger drivers have many good habits that bode well for the future of motoring, but their attitude towards drug-driving is worrying, particularly as the number of fatal accidents involving drugs has increased by 28% in recent years.

“For other motorists, there’s still work to do on tackling the drink-drive culture, and raising awareness of environmental driving issues.”

The Government needs to listen to the voice of the new generation of motorists. They want more clear and accessible information on the effects of drugs, the reality of the drink-drive limit and the ‘morning after’ risks.

The number of vehicle LPG conversions carried out has increased dramatically as more people realise its cost and environmental benefits.

An added benefit of running a vehicle on LPG can include up to 100 per cent exemption from the London Congestion Charge.

There are environmental benefits too, as vehicle running on LPG produce far fewer harmful emissions that contribute to environmental and health problems than traditional road fuels.

Autogas Limited, a joint venture between Calor and Shell, currently supplies around 220 outlets in the UK. In addition, Calor supplies Autogas from over 150 outlets through its Calor Centres, Morrison’s supermarkets and other independent sites.

Simon Bush of Britannia Driving School said: “Calor and Autogas advise that conversions should always be carried out by an LPG Approved installer and, as there are around 200 outlets currently registered in the UK, it is easy to find your nearest specialist on the internet.”

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