604 people detected drug driving in statewide traffic operation

MORE than 600 drivers were detected allegedly driving with drugs in their systems during a statewide police traffic operation last week.

Operation RAID (Remove All Impaired Drivers) commenced at 12am on Thursday 12 February and concluded at 4am on Sunday 15 February, targeting people driving while affected by alcohol, drugs and fatigue.

During the operation, police conducted 9,126 drug tests with 604 people returning positive samples and conducted more than 121,000 breath tests with 167 drink driving offences detected.

While the operation focused on detecting drivers operating a vehicle impaired by alcohol, drugs or fatigue, the high-visibility operation saw police across the state issue more than 6,500 traffic infringement notices, including 1,695 for speed-related offences, 267 for mobile phone use, and 77 restraint-related offences.

Three people lost their lives on NSW roads.

Minister for Police and Counter-terrorism Yasmin Catley said the focus on targeting people driving while affected by alcohol, drugs and fatigue doesn’t end with the conclusion of this operation.

“While Operation RAID has wrapped up, police continue to have a highly visible presence on our roads.

“Too many lives have been shattered because someone thought they were fine to drive when they weren’t.

“Too much of what happens on our roads is preventable.

“Police are out there every day, but they can’t be everywhere – we need drivers to make better, safer choices – for themselves, their passengers and everyone else.”

Assistant Commissioner David Driver, Traffic and Highway Patrol Commander, said disappointingly, drivers continued to get behind the wheel after consuming drugs and too much alcohol.

“People affected by drugs, alcohol and fatigue are some of the most dangerous behaviours we see on our roads because all of them slows reactions, impair judgement and puts every road user at risk,” Assistant Commissioner Driver said.

“Drug use by those driving vehicles is particularly concerning as data indicates that 24 percent of fatalities on NSW roads involve the presence of illicit substances.

“Last year, there were over 28,000 positive roadside drug indications with police conducting over 215,000 random drug tests.

“Drivers need to understand that when they consume any illicit drug, the chances of being involved in a fatal crash increase.

“Unfortunately, police consistently see a high number of roadside drug test detections, often combined with alcohol or high speeds, during each traffic operation, which is why officers will continue to run enforcement activity to deter dangerous driving behaviour.”