A PEDESTRIAN was hit by a car fleeing police during a crackdown on driving offences.

The blue Ford Focus failed to stop for officers in Olivers Road, Clacton, before colliding with a member of the public somewhere between there and Northbourne Road, where the car was abandoned.

It happened at about 8.25pm on Thursday, December 1, when a slow speed pursuit began but the three people in the car eventually fled.

The car has since been seized and enquiries are ongoing to locate the driver.

A spokesperson for Essex Police said: "The pursuit ended very quickly when the persons within the car abandoned it and fled.

"Officers searched the vehicle and located some illegal drugs, after which a comprehensive search of the surrounding area began.

"A male was later arrested and after the investigation received a  cannabis warning for being in possession of the drugs."

Led by the Safer Essex Roads Partnership (SERP), the Surround A Town operation in Clacton has been hailed a success after about 300 driving offences were clocked up in just 24-hours.

SERP addresses what has been dubbed as the “fatal four” issues - motorists travelling at excessive speed, drink drivers, those failing to wear a seatbelt and using a mobile phone at the wheel.

A recent report on the effectiveness of road side policing suggests the elimination of these four issues would reduce the number of people being killed and seriously injured by more than 20 per cent.

Police officers were joined by Her Majesties Customs and Revenue staff, in Clacton, where hundreds of people were nabbed over driving offences.

During the operation a 39-year-old from Colchester was arrested on suspicion of drug driving and possession of cannabis at about 10.30am in Clacton on Wednesday.

He has since been released on bail pending further investigations until January 24, 2017.

An elderly driver, 96, had his licence revoked after he failed an eyesight test at the side of the road.

Officers requested his licence immediately be revoked by the DVLA using the fast-track procedure introduced in 2013, called Cassie’s Law after the death of teenager Cassie McCord in Colchester.

The man will need to have his eyesight tested and corrected should he wish to apply for his licence back.

Clacton Sergeant Pete Gerard, of the Local Policing Partnership Hub, said: “This type of deployment really does make a short sharp impact in a small area.

“The motivation for the officers is always around education and raising the standards in the public use of vehicles.

“We’re often asked at community meetings about speeders, pavement parkers, untaxed vehicles, speeders and other vehicle related matters - this response deals with all those issues and more.”

Gazette:

On it - Clacton Sergeant Pete Gerard

A total of 142 drivers were recorded as travelling at an excessive speed and three community Speedwatch teams were monitoring passing traffic.

One stationed at Little Clacton Road, in Great Holland, recorded 59 motorists travelling above 37mph.

This follows the launch of Essex Police’s Christmas anti-drink and drug driving campaign, also in partnership with SERP.

The campaign aims to target not only perpetrators but friends and family by highlighting the consequences of drink and drug driving through the eyes of officers who witness them first-hand.

Between December 1 and December 5, a total of 44 drivers have been arrested across the county with 24 of those having been charged and due to appear in court. These include four from the Tendring area and one from Colchester.

  • Daniel Bannerman, 25, of St Mary’s Road, in Clacton, was charged with drink driving, driving without insurance and driving otherwise than in accordance with the terms of his licence.

He was arrested on December 5 at the A12 at Brentwood and is due in Basildon Magistrates’ Court on January 4, 2017.

  • Sarah Cordrey, 35, of Constable Avenue, in Clacton, is due to appear at Colchester Magistrates’ Court on December 19 charged with failing to provide a specimen for analysis. She was arrested at Mersea Road, Colchester, at 11.30pm on December 2.
  • Grace Papergeorgiou, 38, of Colchester Road, St Osyth, is due to appear at Colchester Magistrates’ Court on January 4 charged with drink driving.

She was arrested at Thorpe Road, Thorpe-le-Soken, on December 2 at 9.20am.

  • Christopher Goodwin, 37, of Victoria Place, Brightlingsea, is due to appear at Colchester Magistrates’ Court on December 19 charged with driving whilst unfit through drink.

He was arrested at Magnolia Drive, Colchester, on December 2 at 11.30pm.

A spokesman for Safer Essex Roads Partnership said: “The Surround A Town concept combines overt and covert enforcement together with high profile publicity to increase the public’s awareness of this extra policing.

“The scheme allows us to focus a massive amount of resource in a very concentrated and geographically-targeted area.

“This then allows us to address a wide range of poor behaviours by appropriate use of engagement, education and enforcement which would otherwise be difficult to capture.”

Other similar activities are planned for other areas around the district in the near future.