AS PART of the police’s latest mobile phone crackdown, the Daily Echo joined officers in an unmarked police car as they pursued drivers breaking the law.
Operation Decker saw motorists who were using handheld phones issued with tickets at various locations across Bournemouth and Poole on Thursday morning, February 17.
We went out during morning rush hour, with six motorists caught using their phones in the first 45 minutes - two of whom had no insurance.
Officers on the branded Yellow Buses double decker were spotting motorists on their mobiles and radioing this to unmarked police vehicles following closely behind.
The first vehicle we stopped was a man in a work vehicle caught with the phone on his lap.
READ MORE: Police crackdown on motorists using their mobiles
Officers issued the man with a Traffic Offence Report - which then goes to the central office who will send the man a Fixed Penalty Notice of £200 and six points on his licence, which he can choose to contest in court.
Dorset Police No Excuse Special Sargeant Dave Montgomery said: “People are hooked to their phones - they’re addicted.”
Back in the car, we caught up with the double decker who had already spotted another driver - a female in a silver Mercedes - on the phone.
The driver of the Mercedes was pulled over and it transpired she had no licence and the car was seized.
In the midst of rush hour traffic, a young lad on a motorbike pulled up alongside our unmarked police car.
He had a learners plate loosely attached to his rucksack - not on his bike- and as a result was failing to comply with the conditions of his provisional licence.
With the operation a priority, the motorcyclist was let go with some words of advice and told to get an ‘L’ plate attached to the rear of his bike as soon as possible.
The boy said: “I wasn’t expecting it - when I first saw the police I knew you were out looking for people.
“I’ll definitely be putting it on the bike - I didn’t realise it had to be attached, I thought it just had to be visible.
“Hopefully it’ll be peace of mind now.”
The final motorist pulled over was the driver of a Suzuki who claimed he was using his phone because he was late for work.
READ MORE: Bournemouth child rapist jailed for historic sex offences
It transpired that the visibly upset driver was not insured on the vehicle and that the car had no MOT.
Special Sergeant Montgomery said:
“You kind of feel sorry for him.
“It’s going to be a lot of work and a lot of hassle.
“If he hadn't been on his phone we wouldn’t have pulled him and then we wouldn’t have found out all of the other issues.”
The Suzuki was seized and the driver was issued with six points on his licence and a fine.
In total 12 drivers were found using their phone behind the wheel, three of whom were driving without insurance and the vehicles were seized.
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