POLICE are trying to drive criminals off the roads with a new operation.

Rossendale police are running automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) checkpoints around the valley in a bid to identify suspicious vehicles.

And the operation was launched this week on Grane Road, Haslingden.

ANPR works by scanning vehicle registration plates and checking them against police databases.

Sergeant Chris Counsell said: "The ANPR system allows us to identify vehicles that we suspect are being used by criminals and we can keep track of them on the borough's roads.

"It is important, though, to remember that a vehicle will only be stopped where our intelligence suggests it is appropriate.

"Law abiding citizens have nothing to fear."