In 2021, 47 people were killed and 647 seriously injured on Devon and Cornwall's roads and the police are determined to reduce this number.

With that in mind, earlier this month Rural East Devon police officers and the No Excuses roads policing team carried out a joint operation targeting rural crime and unroadworthy vehicles. 

As well as the policing teams, the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency were also present.

Officers from the Rural East Devon Neighbourhood Team were positioned in prominent locations along the A35 and the A3052, roads which have suffered many serious collisions and are subject to rural and cross border crime. 

As a result of the operation:

• Eight drivers were reported to court for offences ranging from dangerous driving to having no MOT or not wearing a seatbelt
• Three vehicles were prohibited by the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency until the drivers can take a further MOT test.
• Following further investigations, five vehicles were searched under Section 23 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 
• One vehicle was searched under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act in order to locate stolen goods, with ten people also searched under the same act.
• A driver was seen using their mobile phone 
• A motorist was reported for driving without insurance.

Police also witnessed a group of six bikers overtaking a lorry which caused the unmarked police vehicle to brake drastically to avoid a collision. The group were spoken to by the police about the manner of their driving. 

Devon and Cornwall Police are aiming to dramatically reduce the number of deaths on Devon's roads - the Vision Zero South West road safety partnership project aims to stop serious and fatal road traffic collisions in the two counties.

Natalie Warr, manager of the Vision Zero South West road safety partnership, added: "Through detailed analysis, these roads have been designated as high harm routes by our tactical tasking group and will be subject to increased safety and enforcement efforts.

"In 2021, 47 people were killed and 647 seriously injured on Devon and Cornwall's roads. Working together, we are determined to reduce the number of fatal and serious collisions by half by 2030."

For more information please visit the Vision Zero website Vision Zero - A collaborative road safety community project (visionzerosouthwest.co.uk)