Watch as Northamptonshire's dodgiest drivers get caught on camera

A video nasty posted by Northamptonshire Police shows how close to catastrophe some drivers come on the county's roads.

But a campaign allowing motorists to upload dashcam footage of others' dodgy driving means they do not get away with it.

Operation Snap received nearly 800 clips in just two months recently, resulting in 305 prosecution letters being dispatched.

The shocking 54-second clip shows:

■ A van overtaking dngerously on zig-zags next to a pedestrian crossing in Boughton Green Road, Northampton.

■ One vehicle risking a major pile-up by going through a red light at a busy roundabout while others stopped.

■ A taxi braking scarily sharply trying to work out which exit to take off the A14.

■ A car ducking back in to avoid a high-speed head-on collisions after overtaking on a single-carriageway road.

Another video posted last month showed a vehicle tailgating an ambulance as it overtook traffic, narrowly avoiding a head-on smash with a car coming the other way.

That driver wound up with a £574 bill in court and six points on his licence after being caught on camera by another driver.

Officers from the Safer Roads Team were sent 761 #OpSnap videos during November and December 2020 with around a third of the Notices of Intended Prosecution letters going to those accused of driving without due care and attention.

Northamptonshire Police Safer Roads Operations Manager, Matthew O’Connell, said: “Reducing the number of people who are killed or seriously injured on our roads remains a priority.

“It is therefore always disappointing to receive so many examples of poor driver behaviour on our roads, and that some drivers are still willing to not only put their own lives at risk but those of other road users too.

“As a result of Operation Snap, the chances of getting caught for committing traffic offences have increased, which can only be a good thing, and we hope that releasing video clips of poor driver behaviour will encourage everyone to use our roads more safely.”

People can report suspected driving offences by uploading video evidence via an easy online portal on the Force website and completing a form, which automatically creates a witness statement to provide a full account of the incident.

Reports and videos are studied trained police staff to see if an offence has been committed before starting legal proceedings.

The most common reason for a rejected submission is insufficient video evidence to support a prosecution.

Mr O'Connell added: “Although this service allows people to share evidence of driving offences with us quickly and easily, it’s important to remember we only have 14 days from when the offence is committed to take appropriate action.

“It's also important to remember we examine footage for evidence of offences by all parties, so please don't break the law in order to report someone else to us, or you could be in trouble as well.”