A large-scale road check, as Black Friday approaches, in Ille-et-Vilaine

Black Friday promotions are pushing lots of trucks on the roadsthese days. It is for this reason that the authorities carried out large-scale road checks this Tuesday on the Aire de la Chaîne, on the A84, in La Chapelle-Saint-Aubert, in Ille-et-Vilaine. And the transport of goods was particularly targeted.

65 agents were mobilized. Gendarmes, customs officers and labor inspection officials have controlled around a hundred vehicles, including 60 heavy goods vehicles. They noted 24 infractionsparticularly among transporters: driving under drugs, non-compliance with driving time and rest time.

This is the case of Claudio, a Romanian driver, checked in his van. He has made long journeys in recent days without being able to provide a hotel bill or prove his rest time, which is punishable by fine of 750 euros. In a heavy goods vehicle, the gendarmes and customs officers also discovered cocaine and cannabis.

42 deaths on the roads since the start of the year

These reinforced controls take place in a very specific context in the department. “To date, there have been 42 deaths on the roads of Ille-et-Vilaine since the start of the yearspecifies the chief of staff of the prefect, Emmanuel Coquand. That's as much as in 2023 for the whole year.”

The idea of ​​the authorities was to be able to carry out checks both on classic traffic violations, but also to take advantage of Black Friday week to control carriers very numerous on the roads to deliver the products on promotion. Particular attention was paid to the main causes of fatal accidents since the start of the year: speed, alcohol and drugs.

The sanctions were also reinforced by the prefect last summer. “Previously, when you tested positive for drugs, your suspension was two to three months. It increased to six monthsexplains Emmanuel Coquand. In terms of blood alcohol content, if you are tested between 0.50 and 0.59 g, you have a five-month suspension. This increases to six months above 0.60 g, and so on… For 1 g, you have one year of license suspension. And if this is added to narcotics, you have ten months of suspension and you must undergo a medical examination before having the right to drive a vehicle again.”