Highland Police are trialing a new way of catching people using phones while driving
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A NEW UK-wide initiative is aiming to help police officers spot road offences more easily by elevating their viewpoint.
Operation Tramline sees Police Officers use the tractor unit of a heavy goods vehicle (HGV) to observe driver behaviour from a higher viewpoint on public roads.
Highland and Islands Road Policing Unit took part in the operation over five days in February, detecting 30 drivers using mobile phones whilst driving.
Each driver was either issued with a fixed penalty notice for 6 penalty points and a £200 fine, or reported to the Procurator Fiscal for consideration of prosecution.
One driver in Inverness was observed to be reading from a notebook whilst driving, they were charged with careless driving.
Road Policing Officer PC Rose, who was among the participants, said: “Hand held mobile phone use whilst driving, whether making a call, texting, checking social media or using the phone for any other purpose, is an offence.
"It is an unfortunate fact that driver distraction appears as a causation factor in some of the fatal/serious collisions we investigate. The number of people caught during our enforcement activity is disappointing.
"Our use of the HGV tractor unit is a successful tool in tackling this issue and an enforcement method we will continue to deploy.
"Please think twice before you consider using your mobile phone or diverting your attention from the road whilst driving, it could save you from having penalty points endorsed on your driving licence and a monetary fine, or more importantly – it could save a life.”
