A POLICE operation has shown that 7.5 per cent of 1001 drivers stopped had unroadworthy tyres.

Cleveland Police officers stopped motorists on Portrack Lane, Stockton, Marina Way, South Bank and Cleveland Retail Park, Middlesbrough in November.

The tyres on one vehicle were so worn that the cord was exposed and so had to be changed in the car park.

The operation was part of a road safety campaign. Of the 1001 vehicles checked, 75 vehicles had ‘red’ or ‘amber’ tyre tread gradings or had tyre pressure that was of concern which saw the officers check that the pressure of the tyres were not under 20 PSI.

Some vehicles were found to have both low tread and low pressure.

Inspector Lee Rukin, from the Cleveland and Durham Specialist Operations Unit, said: “It is encouraging that the majority of the vehicles that officers looked at had roadworthy tyres which had obviously been maintained well.

“That said, there are still a minority who caused us concern. Tyres need to be maintained, especially at this time of the year when road conditions are more dangerous.

"We don’t want anyone to be seriously injured or even killed on our roads, especially if a collision could have been easily prevented with simple vehicle maintenance. Our aim is to educate drivers so that they know how important it is to keep checking their tyres.”