POLICE in unmarked police cars pounced on drivers in a crackdown on Dorset roads.

Officers swooped on offenders as part of the three-day Operation Vortex campaign.

They caught motorists red-handed on their mobile phones, speeding and committing other motoring offences.

Officers from the western division undercover car have fined motorists an average of £1,000 in fixed penalty fines a day.

PC Kevin Jones, who was driving the car, said: “It’s a good way to educate the general public about the effects of dangerous driving.

“It’s really surprising how many people – especially HGV drivers – who are breaking the law.

“Ultimately, it’s us as traffic officers who are all too often having to go and pass on the message to families when loves ones are injured or have died as a result of that kind of behaviour.”

Between April and July this year 126 people were killed or seriously injured on Dorset’s roads. During the three-day operation Dorset Police issued 134 fixed penalty tickets across the county – 55 for not wearing a seatbelt and 45 for using a mobile phone whilst driving.

The other tickets were issued for a range of motoring offences, including dangerous load, overweight, no insurance, no MOT and driving through a red light.

One motorist who was pulled over for swerving on the road admitted to officers that he was falling asleep at the wheel and another man caught looking at his mobile phone admitted that he was looking at his Facebook internet site on the phone while driving.

During patrols yesterday a 39-year-old lorry driver was pulled over by a police car after he was spotted on his mobile phone on the A35 Dorchester bypass.

After receiving a £60 fine, the officers made further enquiries and discovered that the driver’s company did not hold an operator’s licence and then gave the driver a further £200 fine.

He said: “I wholly agree with what they are doing. The thing is I was on my phone taking a personal call.

“I usually use hands-free but it’s broken and this is the first time I’ve been stopped for using my phone in the 18 years I’ve been a lorry driver.”