NEARLY half the taxis and private hire vehicles stopped and examined in safety checks in Scarborough were immediately banned from the road.
The checks were part of North Yorkshire Police's road safety campaign, Operation Anvil, which aims to cut road deaths and serious injuries.
The operation, in which 40 vehicles were stopped in Scarborough town centre on one evening, was supported b
y the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA), Customs and Excise and Scarborough Council's taxi inspectorate.
Sixteen immediate prohibition notices were issued for various defects, and another five cars were given delayed prohibition notices, which allow the driver a specified period of time to rectify a defect. Two vehicles were seized by Customs and Excise for using red diesel and their drivers were fined £300 each.
The police also issued 47 fixed penalty notices: 16 for seat-belt offences, nine for defective tyres, one for defective brakes, eight for illegally tinted windows, four for illegal registration plates and nine for various other offences.
Police Sgt Neil Campbell said: "It is shocking that such a large number of defective vehicles were found in such a short period of time, some so dangerous they needed taking off the road immediately."
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