Double demerits now in force for the Easter long weekend

As they do each and every Easter long weekend, double demerits are now in force across the state including here in the Hunter.

The high visibility police Easter Operation 2022 kicked off overnight and is in force until 11:59pm on Monday 18 April.

Seven people lost their lives during the Easter long weekend in 2021 and more than 300 people were caught under the influence of alcohol.

Acting Commander of the Port Stephens-Hunter Police District Superintendent Gerard Lawson said drink driving will be a major focus of the operation this weekend.

“There will be a focus on road safety over the coming holiday period, we will have more police on the road, more traffic enforcement and with a particular emphasis on enforcing the alcohol related crime around driving with RBT and drug detection,” he said.

“Generally people are well behaved.”

“We ask people to be patient. We do experience long queues particularity on some of our main roads and people just need to be patient and realise its better to get to the destination safely than get there in a hurry.”

“Drivers should be cautious about what they’re doing and their driving from a road safety perspective but also to protect their licence. I’ve seen people lose their licence from just one speeding offence so people will be out making sure drivers are safe,” said Superintendent Lawson.

Traffic and Highway Patrol Commander, Acting Assistant Commissioner Paul Glinn said a significant number of police resources would have a dedicated focus on road safety throughout the five-day operation.

“The number of people who blatantly disregarded the road rules last year and put the broader community at risk was unacceptable,” Acting Assistant Commissioner Paul Glinn said.

“Make no mistake that our police will be out and about this weekend – including on major road networks and on local streets – to catch those doing the wrong thing.”

In addition to targeting drink driving, Police will also have a focus on targeting drivers that are speeding, drug driving, not wearing seatbelts and distracted by mobile phones.

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