THE latest operation in a crackdown on untaxed vehicles in Wear Valley has led to 26 illegal vehicles being taken off the road.

The move was the third to be carried out under Operation Clampdown, a joint scheme launched by Wear Valley District Council, the Divisional Vehicle Licensing Authority and the police.

A two-day investigation of vehicles in Tow Law, Stanhope, Crook and Bishop Auckland, earlier this month took the total number of untaxed cars removed to 93.

The district council's enforcement officer for community services, Ian Coulthard, said: "Each operation is proving to a huge success. We will be regularly visiting all areas within Wear Valley throughout the next 12 months and it is recommended that all members of the public who obtain a vehicle without tax to buy one now."