ROAD policing meets neighbourhood policing at a Northamptonshire motorway service station next week, at the first-ever Stammtisch organised in the county.

The word Stammtisch is of German origin and means ‘regular table’ or ‘regular meeting’.

Lorry drivers and truckers passing through Northamptonshire will be invited to take a seat at the table at Watford Gap service station next Wednesday (1 April), between 8.30am and 1pm.

The idea is for police officers to meet lorry drivers on a regular basis, to discuss any issues or concerns that they have about navigating the highways and to inform the drivers about the law and regulations relating to the haulage industry.

The initiative is already running in other Force areas and is being co-ordinated by the Central Motorway Police Group.

The focus is upon lorry drivers from overseas, as Stammtisch is a European initiative.

The Stammtisch is at the core of neighbourhood policing – police advertise the meetings, note the concerns of those who attend the meetings, provide information and later report back with updates to matters that have been raised.

Inspector Nigel Rickaby, Operations Tactical Unit inspector, is the lead officer on Stammtisch and two officers from the OTU will attend the meeting each month, together with the mobile police station.

Inspector Rickaby said: “In recent years, truck and lorry drivers who regularly use our motorways have lost a lot of contact with the police.

“The advent of Highways Agency Traffic Officers (HATOs) and greater involvement from the Vehicle Operator Service Agency (VOSA) means that, unless they are being arrested or processed, lorry drivers will rarely see a police officer.

“Stammtisch aims to redress that balance and introduce a regular dialogue between lorry drivers and the police which is mutually beneficial.

“We can advise the drivers about what they have to do to stay within the law while on the road and also publicise the crime prevention work that we do to deter lorry crime and to keep drivers safe.

“Lorry drivers travelling through Northamptonshire, and often stopping over in the county, create their own community and this is an effective way of us being able to get closer to the drivers and to hear their views.”

The Stammtisch will alternate between Watford Gap and Northampton Services on the first Wednesday of each month.

The Highways Agency has stocked the service station with Fresnel lenses, which will be given out to the drivers.

These lenses are placed on a passenger-side window, giving the driver a view of overtaking vehicles that are in the driver’s blind spot.

Originally invented by a French physicist in the early 19th century, they widen the field of view for foreign LGV drivers and come highly recommended by VOSA.

Officers will advertise next Wednesday’s event by leafleting lorry windscreens overnight Tuesday to Wednesday, so when the drivers wake up they will know that the officers are on-site to talk to.