MORE than 300 drivers have fallen foul of new traffic regulations in a two-week blitz in Chester-le-Street town centre.

Changes to the layout of the centre have limited access to buses and emergency vehicles between the town's library and market place.

Loading and unloading outside commercial premises is also subject to tighter controls, requiring delivery drivers to use designated bays where businesses have no entry at the back. The vehicles involved must also display a blue permit.

The new regulations for the town centre's traffic flow and parking systems were devised by Chester-le-Street District Council and Durham County Council in an attempt to create a safer, more shopping-friendly, pedestrianised area.

Signs were displayed ahead of the changes, but many drivers either were unaware of them or chose to ignore them.

In a bid to get the message through, police and community support officers spent the first five days making regular patrols of the area to educate drivers about the regulations and the consequences of flaunting them.

But, on Monday, May 9, the 'honeymoon' period came to an end and drivers who defy the laws face a £30 fixed penalty fine.

During the past two weeks, a team, led by PC Craig Johnson, which includes PCSOs Adrian Richards, Christine Taylor, Mark Lumsden and Jeff Russell, has issued fixed penalty tickets, demands for driving documents or handed out official warnings to 311 drivers who ignored the new rules.

Additionally, two cyclists, both aged over 18 were given tickets for riding on the pavement.

PCSO Richards said: "The local bus company, retail outlets and members of the public have all commented on how safe the town centre has become, particularly for pedestrians, in such a short space of time.

"One of the spin-offs is that the increased presence of uniforms on the streets has produced a drop in town centre crime.

"The operation will certainly be repeated if the traffic flow through the town shows signs of increasing."