More than a third of drivers, pulled over for spot checks at the side of the road by police, were driving illegally or their vehicles had dangerous faults. Special constables pulled over 400 motorists in Gedling, Nottinghamshire over the weekend.
They found 150 vehicles or drivers were not up to standard and should not be on the road.
Special cameras were also used to read car number plates to see if the vehicles were stolen or untaxed.
'Instantly recognisable'
The details were checked against a national database using the new Automatic Number Plate Recognition camera.
Kevin Davison, Nottinghamshire Police said: "The van is what is known as a number plate recognition van.
"It checks everything on the database and on all the databases all over the country to see where a vehicle has been, who owns it and whether it is taxed and insured."
Officers say they hope such a high visibility operation will reassure members of the public, particularly those living in Daybrook where 384 crimes were committed in the last six months.
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