Hawkesbury police are concerned road safety messages are still not getting through to some drivers after a number of speeding and drink driving offences were detected on local roads over the June long weekend.
A total of 4,848 breath tests were conducted in the Hawkesbury region from early morning Friday, June 8 to midnight on Monday, June 11, as part of Operation Stay Alert, according to Chief Inspector Garry Sims of Hawkesbury Police Area Command.
“Of those, there were six PCA offences. Three were mid-range, two were low-range, and the remaining one was a positive detection roadside but the driver went under [the legal limit] when he came back to the police station,” he said.
There were three positive drug driving detections, and police were now awaiting results of laboratory tests on the samples provided, he said.
“More than 100 tickets were also issued for speeding,” Chief Inspector Sims said.
Nearly 140 tickets were issued for general traffic offences, including licence breaches, using mobile phones while driving, and vehicle compliance.
While police were happy no fatalities were recorded in the area, it was concerning members of the public were still choosing to drink drive and speed on local roads, Chief Inspector Sims said.
“We would have been very happy if we had conducted that many tests [4,848] and come back with nothing,” he said. “We are still concerned the message is not being accepted by members of the community.
“We are pleased to report no major collisions or accidents over the weekend ... because one of the objectives of the operation was to be fatality free on the roads.
“But when you look at speed being a major factor in fatalities, there were more than 100 people booked for speeding. Combining speed and alcohol has the potential to turn into something serious.”
Chief Inspector Sims thanked those who had helped spread the road safety messages posted on the Hawkesbury police Facebook page over the weekend.
“[The campaign] received a lot of interest from the public,” he said. “Police appreciated the fact people shared those posts so we could get that safety message out to as many people as possible.”
To follow Hawkesbury police on Facebook, go to https://www.facebook.com/hawkesburypac/
Three people lost their lives in separate crashes across the state as Operation Stay Alert came to an end.
Double demerits applied throughout the four-day operation.