TRUCKS STOP 10,000 lorry and bus drivers banned f or booze and health problems
HERE’S a white cute picture to brighten up your morning…
The baby Japanese macaque monkey looks adorable as it stares into the lens, before getting a cuddle ftom mum. A RECORD number of truckers are being banned from the road over drink and health problems.
A total of 10,708 lorry, bus and coach drivers were axed last year by the DVLA because of health fears, we can reveal.
They include sleep apnoea, where drivers could fall asleep at the wheel, and failing eyesight.
The figures were obtained by the Sunday People after eight people died on the M1 in a collision between two trucks and a minibus last month.
Alcohol- related bans are up 59% in the last three years, from 358 to last year’s 571.
The 10,708 total is up from 8,093 the previous year and 7,464 three years ago. The largest group to be banned were the 1,514 with high blood pressure.
But there were also 363 at risk of blackouts, 66 who could only see out of one eye and 235 with sleep apnoea, said doctors.
Department of Transport statistics reveal 1,336 people died in the last five years in an accident involving a lorry and 352 in a bus or coach crash.
Doctors can report health concerns about drivers to the DVLA after medicals – and they may lose their licence.
A spokesman for the DVLA said: “All drivers must meet minimum medical standards. There are additional checks for drivers of large goods vehicles and passenger carrying vehicles, which we strictly enforce. This is to protect drivers and other road users.”