Driver makes rude gesture at unmarked police HGV

A van driver who made a rude gesture as officers filmed him from an unmarked police HGV has been fined £200.

The motorist was spotted on the A1(M) near Wetherby without a seat belt and using a mobile phone.

When he realised he was being recorded he made an offensive sign at the lorry alongside him, unaware there were police inside, National Highways said.

The agency said the driver was issued with a penalty notice and six points on his licence.

It released footage of the sting to mark the start of a two-week safety campaign which runs until 1 April.

Undercover lorries have been used by UK police since April 2015. They are not speed restricted and are fitted with flashing lights.

According to National Highways more than 26,000 driving offences have been recorded across England since the so-called supercabs came into use.

The higher vantage point gives officers a "different perspective" from which to spot and record potentially dangerous drivers, it said.

Some of the more unusual cases have included:

• A lorry driver with his lunch in his lap steering with his knees as he used his phone

• One motorway driver eating lasagne with a knife and fork while driving

• An HGV driver boiling a kettle on the dashboard

• Another eating pickled gherkins from a jar with his elbows on the steering wheel

• One motorist caught twice in a single day - morning and afternoon - using their mobile phone along the A38 in Derbyshire.

National Highways and forces in Northumberland, Durham and North Yorkshire, plan to spend the next fortnight targeting the A1 in a bid to tackle dangerous drivers.

It said it dealt with multiple daily reports from the road, with 9,675 in 2021, including 614 traffic collisions.