Reckless motorists caught driving dangerously to get around bin trucks

Watch: Council releases footage of motorists driving dangerously to get around bin trucks

A council has released footage of reckless motorists driving dangerously to get around bin lorries.

Footage showed impatient motorists mounting curbs and misusing roundabouts to pass the slow-moving refuse trucks.

Cornwall Council said the drivers' actions could have resulted in death or serious injury to refuse workers and members of the public.

Carol Mould, the council's portfolio holder for neighbourhoods, said: “I could hardly believe what I was seeing!

"For the sake of a few moments delay, people seem to be willing to not only put the lives of waste crews in danger, but also the lives of pedestrians and other road users."

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Multiple vehicles are seen mounting the pavement and speeding along a grass verge.

A car doesn’t even pause before mounting the pavement to get past the collection lorry, even with pedestrians visible on the opposite pavement.

Another motorist is in such a hurry they don’t even negotiate a roundabout the correct way.

Mould warned motorists to drive more carefully, adding: "We all need to work together to keep our communities safe.

"Please respect our waste crews who were rightly recognised and applauded as ‘hi vis heroes’ for keeping such an essential service running during the pandemic.”

Biffa, who deliver the rubbish and recycling collection services on behalf of the Council said in a statement: “We do our best to keep the collection trucks moving as quickly as possible.

"We are aware that everyone has somewhere they need to be, but it is disheartening, and sometimes quite threatening, to see other road users being so impatient.

"Crews sometimes get verbal abuse too which is upsetting when they are just trying to provide an essential service to every household in Cornwall.”

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Waste and recycling collection is vast, with individual vehicles and crews collecting from up to 2,500 properties a day in Cornwall alone.

Vehicles and crews aim to avoid holding up traffic and work as quickly as possible to clear the road.

The collection teams have rules and restrictions to protect the crew and the public.

Traffic volume, the time of year, inconsiderate parking and roadworks can all impact where they can safely pull in.