THIRTY motorists in Blackburn and Darwen have had their cars clamped in just two days as part of a drive to tackle road tax dodgers.

Police and DVLA officials launched the clampdown across the county this week and the owners of unlicensed could find their cars crushed as part of the blitz.

As part of the campaign a road block was set up today on the A666 Bolton Road, Darwen under the motorway bridge.

Police believe there are 37,000 unlicensed vehicles on the county's roads which amount to a massive £4.5million in lost revenue.

Last year more than 27,000 tax dodgers in Lancashire were taken to court and prosecuted and £2.7million in revenue recovered. Inspector Tracie O'Gara of Blackburn police said: "We receive many calls regarding untaxed vehicles and it is no doubt a source of anger and frustration for law-abiding road users.

"It is also true to say that many untaxed vehicles won't have a valid MOT certificate and drivers often have no insurance.

"We aim to reduce road casualties and this operation will remove many death-trap vehicles from our roads."

Lancashire Police and traffic wardens, along with other forces in the North West, are teaming up with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) for the crackdown.

As part of the campaign, teams from the DVLA will be on 24-hour patrol to spot offending vehicles.

Vehicles left unclaimed for more than a day will be impounded and any unclaimed after five weeks could be auctioned off or crushed.

Drivers must produce a current tax disc and MOT certificate to retrieve their vehicle.

Without one, a £120 surety will be required and returned when a valid disc is produced.

Clamped cars are subject to a release fee of £80, plus £15 a day for storage.

During a similar scheme across the county in June, 60 people had their vehicles clamped after being found with no valid tax discs.

Since vehicle clamping started in 1997 more than 7,800 vehicles have been clamped and relicensed, bringing in an extra £900,000 in revenue.