More than 100 driving offences were identified in the space of just 2 days as part of proactive efforts to tackle crimes on Isle of Wight roads. Throughout Wednesday 20th and Thursday 21st March, mainland-based Roads Policing Unit (RPU) officers joined teams on the Island as part of Operation Wightwash. Wightwash has been stood up in recent years to bolster our efforts in intercepting drivers committing offences on the road network, and is run at regular intervals throughout the year. During the 2-day op this week, 117 offences were dealt with on the road, including the arrest of a driver suspected of being under the influence of cannabis. One vehicle was seized because the driver had no licence – he was initially stopped by police after he was spotted driving whilst on his mobile phone. The officers dealing with this stop also identified that the vehicle had no MOT. Another vehicle was taken to a weighbridge due to concerns surrounding the load it was carrying, and it was found to be 68% overweight. Throughout the op, other offences dealt with included:
- Drivers on their mobile phones
- Driving without seatbelts
- Insecure loads
- Excess speed
- Front windows excessively tinted
- Number plate offences
- Tyre tread issues
- Exhaust issues
- Licence offences
- Tax offences
- Vehicles driving through red lights
It’s not all doom and gloom however, with teams noticing an improvement in vehicles driving with secure loads and legal number plates when compared to previous Wightwash operations. Road safety issues are regularly brought to our attention on the Isle of Wight, and are clearly of concern to Island residents. A spokesperson for Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary has said:
“We want you to be reassured that we listen to these concerns, and regularly conduct enforcement action to target the minority of drivers whose standards fall far below what is legally expected of them. “Our activity has a particular focus on stopping drivers who display the ‘fatal four’ behaviours – these are the four poor driving habits that pose the greatest risk of leading to a serious or fatal collision, and include drink/drug driving, driving without a seatbelt, speeding, and mobile phone use whilst driving. “Police continue to develop and act upon the intelligence around hotspot locations across the Island for driving offences. “We encourage members of the public to report driving offences, and concerns around driving standards, to police as this all feeds into our intelligence-gathering work and helps us keep road users safe.”
Article continues below this advertisement
They could be employed full time dealing with illegal number plates, there are so many of them that have been in use for years. What is the fascination with altering the layout of the number plate to show 2 initials IOW 2 initials? It’s only a number plate on a car and should be legal.
Well done
Now crackdown on building Companies, Engineering, Utility Companies and
Island Roads themselves.
So many of these Companies tow machinery on trailers that display
different registration numbers on the trailers to the vehicle towing the trailer.
Also it is amazing how many vehicles are parked illegally along many
Island Roads with NO Valid MOT
Keep up the good work
not to mention the trailers where the lights/light boards are faulty or obscured
Hope the island chavs got hit where it really hurts.
In their pot stash?
Well done. There are way too many red light jumpers, speeders and tailgaters on this Island by ignorant and arrogant drivers who have no respect for other road users. We need the road traffic units here on a permanent basis. Keep up the good work.
Speeders? Where? More like the “safe” drivers pootling along at 18mph in a 60 zone. They’ve probably got a calendar in the car, not a speedometer, because it takes them so long to get anywhere.
You have summed up this Numpty Island.
I drive along everyday and see so many vehicles breaking the law.
Idiots parking on zig Zags, jumping red lights, turning into No right turn Roads, speeding ,
driving down roads in wrong direction and tailgating etc
Plod should use unmarked cars like IW Council Enforcement Officers do!
Just identify yourself as “Katie Price” for a get out of Jail Card
Katie Price is exempt from the law
What a load of rubbish!
They should be doing this every day and should not be just a one off!
Everyday of the year there are vehicles parked on Double yellow lines
outside Sandown Pier
Maybe plod or IW Council Enforcement Officers should pop along with a
bunch of Parking tickets
Easy way to make money.
Parking offences are not handled by the police unless they are road traffic act offences. Parking on double yellows is handled by Council enforcement officers.
Pretty much the only thing the police will ticket you for is parking on zig zag lines by schools and crossing. That will get you 3 points on your licence, too
The reported targeting the “minority”of bad drivers , yet found 117 in two days. A big minority. Outside schools twice a day there is dangerous parking. Heaven forbid the little dears have to walk the last 50 or 100 meters. They might loose weight.
There are so many opportunities to make money on the island
Speeding is rife, heavier fines and extra points on licence would be a
deterrent.
Military Road is an Autobahn, vehicles do what they
want.
Motorcyclists do a tonne +
There are no Speed Camera’s to stop them!
No chance of doing a tonne on there now it is the start of the Lycra season with 20 cyclists spread out over at least a mile and two or three abreast… as it was today (Sunday). Oh, of course there was one who had stopped to have a ‘iss on the side of the road in full view….
About time the Police started to have a word or two with their dangerous riding….
Dangerous (but legal) parking would be higher on my personal agenda than illegal number plates. So would insufficient lights in murky conditions (i.e. driving with side lights, no lights, faulty lights) and lack of indicating. All of this is posing risks to others, altered number plates do not.
Remember when the “2-DAY TARGETED OPERATION” was every day. Then came the Tories and the drive to cut all spending at all costs. We could afford all the spending in the 50’s yet now when our GDP higher we can’t afford it???? In the last 10 years 80 billion of tax payers money has been given to oil companies. Maybe instead spend it on the police and the NHS.
Speeding is a big issue on the Island thesedays.
The Council could make a mint of money by installing cameras at Coppins bridge round about and issuing penalties to those that stop in the yellow hatching area and jumping the lights
Good job to Hampshire constabulary, perhaps this should be a monthly operation…
And still we have a local cretin with a very loudly backfiring car blighting the esplanade area of Ryde, if these cars have had exhausts or engines modified the owners have invalidated their insurance if the companies are not aware, i cannot see any insurance company agreeing to a car modification designed for no other reason than to be a public nuisance.