traffic cops have pulled over much more than 5,000 motorists under new laws to curb lane hogging and tailgating.
Auto express submitted freedom of information requests to all 45 forces to see how numerous they’d stopped and why, and can reveal 5,472 chauffeurs have been stopped because 16 August, when the new powers came into force.
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The laws allow police to issue on-the-spot fines and licence points to chauffeurs for careless driving such as lane hogging, tailgaiting or wheelspins. chauffeurs can also be dealt with by way of an educational course, similar to the drink-driving scheme provided to cut the length of a driving ban.
The exclusive figures show police Scotland issued the most, with 1,454, although it covers a larger area than numerous forces. In second place was Nottinghamshire. numerous forces were unable to tell us exactly why drivers had been stopped – they could only split them between those pulled over for driving without due care and attention and inconsiderate driving.
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However, several forces did break it down. Out of these 600 particular offences, there were 154 lane hoggers – the most (48) in Thames Valley. Undertaking offences were recorded 84 times, as were 46 tailgaters. chauffeurs doing things like wheelspins or handbrake turns accounted for 143 offences – with 42 of these recorded in Lancashire.