Bendigo police were out on the roads in full force over the Queen's Birthday long weekend, detecting 70 offences during a major road safety blitz.
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It was part of the statewide Operation Regal which saw Victoria Police target high-risk driving behaviour over four days in an effort to drive down road trauma.
Across the state, police ensured more than 5000 were reprimanded for their actions between Friday, June 10 and Monday, June 13.
In the Greater Bendigo region, police detected five drug-drivers and two drink-drivers and two other drink/drug offences.
There were 35 speeding offences, eight unregistered vehicles, four disqualified drivers and two unlicensed drivers.
Bendigo police also identified seven disobey signs/signals offences and one seatbelt offence.
There were four impoundments of vehicles but no mobile phone or cycling offences.
A 32-year-old Kennington man was subsequently arrested after police executed a warrant on his premises.
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The male has been remanded to appear at court, facing 22 charges including dangerous driving, commit indictable offences whilst on bail and possessing a firearm.
Highway Patrol units together with Bendigo Police worked together at the preliminary breath and drug testing site on Weeroona Aveue throughout Monday morning, where 397 drivers were breath tested and numerous drug tests conducted.
One 30-year-old male was found to be unlicensed and positive for drugs. His vehicle was impounded for 30 days and he will front court at a later date.
Across Victoria, the wet weather did not deter some motorists from slowing down, with more than 40 per cent of all 5689 offences detected statewide under Operation Regal being for speeding.
"It was pleasing to see the majority of road users doing the right thing over the Queen's Birthday weekend, with reduced levels of road trauma overall," Road Policing assistant commissioner Glenn Weir said.
"However, it's completely unacceptable that so many motorists are continuing to take risks on our roads - especially with wet weather to contend with.
"We continue to detect a high number of speeding and unauthorised drivers - these are people that are making a conscious decision to blatantly disregard the road rules."
Automatic number plate recognition technology helped police detect 459 unauthorised drivers - either for being unlicensed, disqualified or suspended.
Widespread alcohol and drug testing also resulted in 195 drink drivers and 177 drug drivers caught from a total 78,350 tests.
One life was lost following a two-car collision in Creswick on Sunday, June 12, bringing the total number of lives lost to 107 in 2022, 12 higher than the same time last year (95).
With six lives lost to date in June, police are urging motorists not to be complacent during the remaining winter months, with poor visibility and wet, slippery roads likely over the coming weeks.
Police will remain highly visible on roads across the state as the Victorian school holiday period kicks off next week.
"Police will continue to target and enforce against those who engage in risky driving behaviour, and we make no apologies for this," assistant commissioner Weir said.
"One bad decision is all it takes to cause a tragedy."
Operation Regal ran from 12.01am on June 10 and concluded at 11.59pm on June 13.
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