Cumbrian cops pinch 100 in speed blitz
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CUMBRIA POLICE have launched a crackdown on speeding truck drivers after a survey revealed that HGVs were involved in 40% of all fatal crashes in the county last year.
Since the month-long initiative was launched on 1 September, more than 100 truck drivers have already been caught speeding.
Police claim that 87% of trucks are exceeding the 50mph speed limit on dual-carriageways and 74% are driving above the 40mph limit on single-carriageway roads.
But local operator Tyson Burridge from Distington-based Tyson H Burridge Transport says the answer isn't to prosecute drivers — instead he has called for the 40mph speed limit on singlecarriageways to he raised to 50mph. Like many other operators he believes this would help reduce accidents: "I can't understand why groups such as the Freight Transport Association haven't used this as a bargaining chip with the acceptance of the implementation of the Working Time Directive.
"Raising the limit is long overdue and would have many benefits: it would help cut accidents as well as increase productivity and improve fuel efficiency."