![Misbehaving motorists concerning Misbehaving motorists concerning](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/gzajA9j5yvatvSgWamdNVy/28585bc2-c0d5-47a8-8ebf-19e3e0b1fd07.JPG/r0_0_4928_3280_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Related:
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
POLICE are not pleased with driver behaviour over the Christmas and New Year period, with the number of people caught doing the wrong thing on the roads higher than in previous years.
Senior Sergeant Ian Brooks from Bendigo highway patrol said police in the area detected 492 offences, including 30 people drink or drug-driving, in the first 16 days of Operation Roadwise to December 31.
Senior Sergeant Brooks said this was a “little higher” than what had been seen over the same period in the past.
This might partly be down to more police resources out on the roads, he said, but driver behaviour exhibited on the area’s roads was still “nowhere near the standard we’d like”.
“We’d like it if we didn’t have to book anyone,” he said.
Senior Sergeant Brooks said most of the offenders had been locals, rather than people travelling through the area.
The number of people detected with drugs in their system was of particular concern, again higher than previous years.
Senior Sergeant Brooks said it appeared messages about not driving while under the influence were not getting through to motorists.
“It’s stupid – whether you get caught or not, you’re still a risk on the road,” he said.
In recent days, police have caught people significantly affected by alcohol, including a Heathcote man whose alleged blood alcohol level was 0.292 and a learner’s supervising driver who allegedly recorded 0.276.
Across the state, 880 drink drivers and 503 drug offences have been detected in the same period.
Victoria Police road policing command Assistant Commissioner Doug Fryer said those committing these offences were displaying “blatant disregard for not only their own lives but the lives of others”.
The local highway patrol unit has committed more than 1900 patrol hours to the statewide operation.
The operation is targeting the main causes of deaths and serious injuries, including speeding, distraction, fatigue, and drink and drug drivers.
Operation Roadwise wraps up on January 8.