Cereal offender caught as police clamp down

HANDS FREE . . . more like hands full

MORE than 85 per cent of people stopped for using their mobile phone while driving in the first week of GMP's crackdown on dangerous motorists were male.

One one of them was even caught eating a bowl of cereal while at the wheel of his car.

Last week Greater Manchester officers launched a major operation to clampdown on drivers who disregard the safety of other road users ­- particularly focussing on mobile phone use which police chiefs say has the same impact as drink driving­ - and have so far stopped 146 people.

Undercover and marked police vehicles have been vigilant in their attempts to catch careless drivers with 142 stopped for mobile phone use and a further four were stopped for not being in proper control of a vehicle.

Of the 142 stopped, 123 (86 per cent) were male and 127 (89 per cent) were over the age of 25. Of the 146 vehicles stopped, 111 were cars, 32 were vans and three were HGVs with 139 people stopped in urban areas and seven stopped on the motorway.

The launch of the campaign last week, which will see the operation continuing up until Christmas, also supported a national week of action to highlight the risks and make people aware of the serious penalties that they will face.

All of the drivers pulled over for using phones were issued with fines and penalty notices and some were told to complete a mobile phone awareness course.

From next year penalties will be put in place seeing offenders given six points on their licence and a £200 fine for using a mobile phone while driving.

Supt Craig Thompson has warned that the first week is only the beginning as the force will show zero tolerance to rogue drivers.

He said: "Last week was just the beginning of our focus on these offences over the coming weeks and send a clear message to anyone using a mobile phone while driving ­- it will absolutely not be tolerated here in Greater Manchester and it must stop.

"As Chief Constable Hopkins said last week, it is time for drivers to take responsibility for what they do when in charge of a vehicle. You wouldn't drink and drive so why is it OK to use a phone when in control of a vehicle? We can all make a difference by urging people to think about their actions."

In the past two years over 5,000 drivers in Greater Manchester have been slapped with fixed penalty notices or sent on a mobile phone awareness course and traffic officers believe those numbers are the tip of the iceberg with an increasing number of people being spotted driving and using their mobile phone.

Anyone with details of persistent offenders who are driving and using their mobile should contact officers or call non-emergency number 101.