Police to target speeding and DUI in Easter road safety blitz

Published 12:00pm 27 March 2024

Words by Ashleigh Howarth

Extra police will be out in force on Queensland roads over the Easter school holidays as officers ramp up their road safety operations.

Operation Easter Break will run from Good Friday, March 29 to Sunday, April 14, with police targeting drivers who are speeding and those driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

The state-wide road safety initiative will see police conducting large-scale static and mobile enforcement for drink and drug driving using dedicated drug testing devices which can detect methylamphetamine, MDMA, cannabis and cocaine.

The number of people dying on Queensland roads is 30 percent higher than this time last year, with 66 fatalities recorded this year.

Queensland Police Acting Commissioner Steve Gollschewski said he wants to see everyone arrive at home or their destination safely.

“We have seen far too many fatal crashes this year already,” he said.

“Every crash leaves a devastated family behind.”

Throughout the months of January and February 2024, police conducted 238,154 breath tests and 8,197 drug tests across Queensland, and detected 2,176 drink driving offences and 1,899 drug driving offences.

During last year’s Easter enforcement road safety initiative, police detected 1,244 drink and drug drivers over the school holiday period and issued 11,181 infringements to drivers, including 1,126 infringements for speeding.

The operation will also heavily be enforcing speed limits, utilising speed cameras and other speed detection devices.

In the first two months of this year, police also issued 20,097 infringement notices for speeding.

Acting Assistant Commissioner Andrew Pilotto from Road Policing and Regional Support Command is asking road users to make good choices and think about the consequences of one bad decision.

“There’s no excuse for speeding or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs,” he said.