Driver who did not break for 33 hours fined

A lorry driver who did not take a break for 33 hours was among those fined a total of £7,300 by police carrying out checks at a port.

The HGV driver had covered 2,000 miles (3,219 km) before stopping to rest, while another driver was found to have driven non-stop for 22 hours during a police operation at Felixstowe port.

Suffolk Police said five foreign HGV drivers were handed the "significant" fines for the drivers' hours offences after 26 lorries were stopped as they entered the UK.

"Anyone not taking the required rest breaks when driving a vehicle of that size is very clearly putting the lives of other road users at risk," said PC Terry Harvey, of the force's commercial vehicle unit (CVU).

Checks were carried out on lorry drivers coming into Felixstowe port

The checks were made during a multi-agency crackdown to make sure people were not entering the country illegally on lorries.

The operation also checked that vehicles were roadworthy and insured, and drivers were working legally.

During the two-day operation that started on 20 September, the unit also stopped 28 fast food delivery drivers in the town.

Immigration officers checked 15 drivers, all of whom were found to be working legitimately.

Police found one vehicle was being used to deliver food without the correct insurance and with a defective tyre.

Other offences detected were vehicles being driven that were not roadworthy, with defective lights and tinted windows, and drivers not wearing seatbelts.

'Policing evolving'

Suffolk's Police and Crime Commissioner, Tim Passmore, said the CVU had been created and funded by council tax contributions.

"The way we live our lives has changed drastically over the past years, and it is important that policing evolves too," he said.

"I fully support the focus on fast food delivery drivers as this is an area for concern in some communities, but not something I could have predicted would be so prolific when I first became PCC back in 2012.

"I find it absolutely unbelievable that drivers, who rely on their driving licence for their livelihood, would take such a cavalier attitude to their safety and the safety of other road users."