A man was caught masterbating while driving along an Uxbridge motorway during a police crackdown on dangerous driving.

The offender, in his 50s and from Southampton, was driving his BMW 'at speed' along the M40, which leads into Uxbridge.

A police spokesman confirmed that the man was stopped after officers spotted him carrying out an 'indecent act' before later confirming what this was.

Police caught just under 200 drivers breaking the law in just five days as part of a joint operation in the Thames Valley and Hampshire area.

Sergeant Paul Diamond from the Roads Policing Commercial Vehicle Unit said: “We run these operations regularly because we see collisions everyday of the week caused by drivers not concentrating on the roads ahead.

“Most of the offenders are not horrible criminals, they are often kind and decent people but they just don't realise the consequences of their actions not just to the victims but on their own lives and to the security of their jobs and family.

“The irony is that most of the people we stop agree with what we are doing, so why do they do it?”

READ MORE:Cyclist fined after trying to pedal his way to Heathrow on busy M25 motorway

Both men and women risking their lives

A total of 187 people were caught committing driving offences on roads including the M3, M40, and M4 .

The joint operation was run by Thames Valley Police and Hampshire Constabulary from last Monday (June 6) to Friday (June 10).

It is the eight time Operation Tramline has been run and an unmarked car is used to patrol the motorways while intercept cars deal with offenders once they have been identified.

Police added that offenders were of all ages and walks of life, and were split 'fairly evenly' between men and women.

Other offences included one driver reading a novel at the wheel and 147 people using mobile phones, with police saying the majority were texting or looking at the phone rather than the road.

Sgt Diamond added: “We hope operations like this will help save lives and make people think twice about what they are doing while driving and concentrate on the road ahead.”