Shock video shows phone-using van driver with no hands on wheel on main Derbyshire road

A van driver has been caught on a Derbyshire road with no hands on the wheel as he used his mobile phone.
Still from the Highways England video.Still from the Highways England video.
Still from the Highways England video.

He was one of 3,000 law-breaking drivers filmed by police from a fleet of three Highways England-funded HGV cabs in the past year.

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The incident happened as he travelled along the A38 near Derby, even though he pulled into a service station to stop just a few seconds later.

Still from the Highways England video.Still from the Highways England video.
Still from the Highways England video.

Other footage captured from the cabs in their first year of use included a lorry driver with no hands on the steering wheel while making a credit card payment.

The cabs give officers an elevated position to observe and film unsafe driving on England's motorways and major A-roads as part of Operation Tramline.

They will be deployed on the M1 in the coming week.

Richard Leonard, head of road safety at Highways England, said: "Hundreds of thousands of drivers use our roads every day and the vast majority are sensible behind the wheel but some are putting themselves and others at risk.

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"We introduced the three new HGV supercabs last year to help keep the roads safe and tackle dangerous driving by people who have either got into bad habits or are simply ignoring the law.

"The cabs have helped to identify over 3,000 unsafe drivers over the past year and we hope our week of action on the M1 will encourage everyone to think about what more they could do to improve how they drive."

Chief Constable Anthony Bangham, National Police Chiefs' Council lead for roads policing, said: "Operation Tramline is a successful collaboration between the police and Highways England.

"We remain committed to tackling those who take unnecessary risks with their own safety and the safety of others on our roads by allowing themselves to be distracted while driving. The consequences of these actions are often devastating.

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"We will continue to work alongside Highways England on Operation Tramline and will prosecute drivers who ignore the risks."

Tom Cotton, the Road Haulage Association's head of licencing and infrastructure policy, added: "We need to improve road safety - there's a small minority of drivers whose actions endanger other road users often with tragic consequences.

"Operation Tramline is an invaluable initiative to help police catch the drivers putting themselves and others at risk."