DRIVING next to a big lorry on a motorway or dual carriageway can be intimidating. There's always that nagging worry: is the driver as alert as he should be? Has he seen me?

Worrying new evidence suggests that sometimes, perhaps not.

North Yorkshire police officers who went 'undercover' to observe the driving habits of HGV drivers found that nearly one in ten were not driving as carefully as they should.

Officers with a camcorder used an unmarked truck to drive alongside HGVs so they could get a good view into the cab.

They saw drivers talking on mobile phones; driving without seat-belts; failing to use lanes properly; and even parking dangerously.

Almost 1,000 HGVs were observed on the A1, A168 and A19 in North Yorkshire in March as part of Operation Marathon, and 86 were breaking the law in one way or another.

Sergeant Yvonne Taylor of North Yorkshire Police admitted officers were surprised at the numbers.

"For the most part, truck drivers are responsible on the roads, because their livelihood depends on it," she said.

A sizeable minority, however, clearly are not. Full marks to the police for uncovering the problem.

Before the rest of us get too smug, however, we should remember that it isn't only lorry drivers who drive poorly. There are countless examples of bad driving on our roads every day, from the drivers of every kind of vehicles.

Sgt Taylor has promised the police will continue to use every tactic they can to bring unsafe drivers to book. Poor driving can so easily cost lives. Everything that can be done to make us drive better is to be welcomed.