POLICE have stepped up efforts to combat wrong-way drivers in King Street, with 31 offenders caught in just an hour.

A traffic operation at the bottom of Minshull Street last Thursday, April 20, found drivers turning right against the King Street one-way system and heading down Old Market Place.

The issue has been a long-standing one in the town centre, and police and councillors alike are keen to find a solution.

A Cheshire Police spokesman said: “The one-way traffic operation was conducted on April 20 between 8am and 9am.

“It comes after the local community made complaints to officers that vehicles were coming down Minshull St, turning right onto King St and then turning left on to Old Market Place.

“Officers assessed the concerns and within one hour 31 vehicles were pulled over and given strong words of advice and educated about their behaviour.

“In the long term, there will be plans for more large-scale operations to combat the problem and work with the council.“

Cllr Andrew Malloy of Knutsford Town Council says the issue is one that requires education.

He said: “We have mentioned it as a council and as individuals to the police. We went to visit the CCTV centre last year and we saw it happen then. There is a camera there that can pick it up.

“For them to have an operation there, they clearly see it as an issue. It’s good they have picked up on it.

“Residents have mentioned it as well and have seen it happen. It’s not the safest thing to do, and it looks like they are just trying to cut out a longer journey through traffic lights.

“It’s education. Anything traffic-wise or roads-wise is simply education – ‘you shouldn’t be doing this and it could cause an incident, please drive safely on the roads’.

“It has been going on for a while. If people know the police are looking at it, they may think twice, and think it’s not worth doing and taking the risk.”