Police launch road blitz on speeding drivers as fatalities surge
Starting Monday, police from the Highway Patrol unit and the Public Order Response Team will be scanning thousands of vehicles across the state, targeting speeding drivers.
Victoria
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Police have put leadfoot motorists on notice amid a huge spike in the number of speeding drivers losing their lives on the state’s roads.
Speed has been a contributing factor in at least 31 of the 103 road deaths so far this year, prompting a road blitz targeting drivers exceeding limits.
The speeding death toll is up from 23 deaths at the same time last year — an increase of more than 34 per cent.
From today, officers equipped with radar guns will swarm the state’s freeways, highways and local roads.
Police from several agencies including the Highway Patrol unit and Public Order Response Team will scan thousands of vehicles.
Road Policing Assistant Commissioner Glenn Weir said the message was “simple”.
“Today we will have an increased focus on speed right across the state,” he said.
“If a police car passes you on a highway today, your speed will likely be checked.
“Every year we see the devastating impacts of speeding.
“From those whose lives are lost to their family members, partners, friends, work colleagues and emergency services who attend the scene – it ends up being many thousands of lives impacted by speeding behaviours.”
Force intelligence suggests speed was a contributing factor in more than 45 of the 284 road deaths last year – with 2025 on track to surpass both of those figures.
About 1200 Australians are killed on the roads each year, with nearly a quarter of the deaths in Victoria.
A new road safety analysis also found Victorian drivers some of the most likely to use their mobile phone behind the wheel while driving.
Victorian drivers were found to have reached for their phone once in every six trips on average, ranked the third most often of any drivers across the country, according to Rollin’ Car Insurance data.
Geelong was also found to be home to Australia’s safest drivers
“Our analysis of over 18 million kilometres of driving data from our Safe ‘n Save app reveals that, while many Australians earn an A on their safe driving score, there’s still room for improvement,” the insurance company’s executive manager Brendan Griffiths said.
“Habits like phone use and harsh braking remain common on Australian roads, putting drivers, passengers and pedestrians at risk.”
Originally published as Police launch road blitz on speeding drivers as fatalities surge
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