THREE potential death traps were removed from the roads around York as part of the police's Operation Dawn.

Police officers and employees of the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) stationed themselves in Murton Lane, near Grimston Bar, yesterday to catch drivers of commercial vans and trucks that were not roadworthy.

Ten vehicles were stopped and, of those, three were given prohibition notices which ban the driver from taking them back on to the road until defects have been repaired.

PC Graeme Wright said the drivers of the three vehicles all had to get them recovered as the repairs could not be done at the roadside.

He said one of the vehicles stopped had no working lights, another had a huge crack in the windscreen which obscured the driver's line of sight and the third had a bumper and front wing missing.

PC Wright said: "The vehicles stopped and checked revealed some serious defects which could have caused major injury or damage were they to be involved in a collision. Operation Dawn has highlighted the work by North Yorkshire Police and VOSA in improving road safety. We will continue to protect the public from negligent road users."

PC Wright said the police worked in conjunction with VOSA as the police have the power to stop vehicles which VOSA members don't.

Of the other vehicles pulled over, one was found to have a completely bald tyre and was being driven with no MOT. In that case the driver is now being prosecuted.

Another two vehicles were given safety inspection notices. No details were available as to what the faults were, but PC Wright said they would have been relatively minor and would not have been an immediate safety risk.

But he said the owners of the vehicles will still have to get them repaired as soon as possible and provide proof at a local police station that the work has been done.

Operation Dawn has been running all week and has seen the police and partner agencies making a concerted effort to tackle issues of crime, disorder and antisocial behaviour with a particular focus on traffic problems, alcohol and drugs, environmental matters such as street cleanliness, issues concerning young people and housing.