MOTORISTS caught parking on zig-zag lines outside schools in Southend will be warned by police and parking officers during a week of action.

Teams from Essex Police and Southend Council’s road safety team are joining forces to send a message to drivers as Road UK Safety Week starts today.

It comes just weeks after it was revealed in the Echo how the number of motorists fined for parking on the zig-zags trebled between 2011 and 2013.

During the campaign, officers will patrol schools in the borough checking whether people are parked on the lines, which breaches the Highway Code.

Anyone caught will be spoken to about why they should not be on there, while leaflets explaining the rules and safety issues will also be handed out. Cheryl Hindle-Terry, team leader of the council’s road safety unit, said: “We need to make it very clear to some drivers that these areas are not reserved for them to drop off or collect their children.

“They may be unaware of the potential danger they are causing to their own children and all the other children near the school. It is vital for our children to have safe and hassle-free journeys to and from school.”

A survery released by insurance firm AXA last month showed the number of drivers in Southend caught on zig-zags rose from 326 in 2011 to 1,049 in 2013.

The increase has been linked to the use of spy cars. People caught parking on zig-zags are normally fined £70.