Officers from Bendigo’s Highway Patrol unit will be out in force over the coming days in a bid to reduce road trauma.
Operation Arid launches this Friday, March 6th at 12.01am, and runs through until 11.59pm on Monday – which also marks to Labour Day public holiday.
According to Victoria Police, the statewide road-safety blitz “aims to curb dangerous driving behaviour and prevent serious injuries and fatalities”.
Such behaviour includes driving under the influence of alcohol, drugs or fatigue, and speeding.
Acting Senior Sergeant Lee Clayton of the Bendigo Highway Patrol spoke to the Wake Up Call earlier this week, saying police often see a spike in such behaviours during public-holiday periods.
“Across the spectrum we see certain spells of good driver behaviour… measured by the lack of road trauma,” Acting Snr Sgt Clayton said.
“But in the absence of actual road trauma, what seems to be a constant is poor decisions made by drivers.
“And that always relates to our speeding [and] distraction offences, and unfortunately our impaired driving offences, which then feeds into trauma.
“What seems to be the constant is… we always see a spike [in offending] over these long weekends because of that increased [traffic] volume.”
The latest data from the TAC shows that 38 lives have been lost on Victoria’s road network so far this year, 23 of them in regional areas.
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