Vans and light commercials travelling from Preston towards Ormskirk and Southport were pulled over in a police 'border force' operation near Bretherton this morning.
Some half dozen officers were on duty at a layby near the massive Golden Acres pet food factory on the A59 - there were early morning queues for traffic travelling to Preston which saw hold ups at the busy Tarleton traffic lights.
12 noon update
A police spokesman said: "The activity is part of an ongoing operation into the theft of vehicles and plant machinery.
"We will provide further details when we can."