Police crackdown on speeding truckies for National Road Safety

Drunk and drugged truckies, speeding heavy vehicles and unsecured loads are just some of what’s on the radar for police officers this week, as the state’s road fatalities to date far surpass 2019’s total road related deaths.

Drunk and drugged truckies, speeding heavy vehicles and unsecured loads are just some of what’s on the radar for the Queensland Police Service this National Road Safety Week, as police on Tuesday morning took to one of Brisbane’s most frequented truck routes to conduct random intercepts of heavy vehicles.

The targeted operation saw police pull over truckies in a randomised process at the Port of Brisbane, where officers checked log books, looked for illegal modifications, conducted roadside breath and drug tests and implemented speed enforcement.

Police pull over a truck in a random check at the Port of Brisbane.

Inspector Ian Crang, of the QPS road policing and regional support command, said officers from the road policing task force were looking at multiple factors that could contribute to dangerous driving.

“We’re looking at whether the driver has exceeded the hours they’re allowed to drive, looking for defects on the vehicle, down to loose wheel nuts,” Insp Crang said.

“We’ve also got the capabilities to download the engine system on the vehicle to see if things like the emissions have been tampered with or if the speed limit has been tampered with. If the speed limit has been tampered with it means the vehicle can go faster than it’s allowed to go.”

In one instance Tuesday morning, police pulled over a man who had an unsecured load in his truck.

Insp Crang explained the potential for serious accidents as a result of loose items within the truck’s cargo stores.

Police discover an unsecured load while conducting random checks at the Port of Brisbane.

“With an unsecured load, the load can shift and that can actually cause the vehicle to tip. That’s certainty of danger to the driver and of danger to other vehicles around it,” he said.

Last year, 219 people died on Queensland’s roads.

Sadly, this year, that number has already surpassed 230.

This week is National Road Safety Week, and although it lasts only lasts seven days, Insp Crang said road safety is of high importance all year round.

“Road safety is a very important factor and we need to be aware of that throughout the whole year,” he said.

“We are coming into Christmas shortly and that’s a very busy time of year. We need to be very cognisant about the way we are on the roads to reduce accidents and reduce fatalities.”