Qld Police out in force during ‘Spring Break’ to curb horror road toll

Police have pleaded with drivers to ‘be patient’ during the most dangerous time of the year on our roads.

Police have pleaded with drivers to “be patient” during the most dangerous time of the year on our roads, with the state’s “shocking” death toll on track to be the worst in a decade.

Acting Chief Superintendent Christopher Stream warned motorists there would be an increased police presence - involving both marked and unmarked patrols - as officers attempt to curb the road toll during the school holidays.

“The road toll is shocking for us … it is people’s lives,” he said.

The engine block of a car from a fatal collision. Photo Alasdair Young.

“We are seeing a high feature of those motorcycle riders in those fatality accidents, we are seeing pedestrians involved in those fatality accidents, but also, don’t forget with the weather conditions that are being predicted, we’ve seen a number of deaths this year related to vehicles driving into flooded waters.

“So if it’s flooded, forget it. It’s not worth your life.”

He said Operation Spring Break was aimed at making sure people got home safely from their holiday travels.

He said the Motor Accident Commission had provided overtime funding so more police could be on Queensland road networks over the next two weeks.

Toowoomba Road Policing Unit, Senior Constable Mike McLoughlin conducts roadside breath tests. Photo Bev Lacey / The Chronicle

“You will see police patrolling on the roads (and) on the beaches conducting those patrols, as well as using Polair to assist in policing operations and co-ordinate that activity on the ground,” Chief Supt Stream said.

“Unfortunately we are currently at 17 additional road deaths in comparison to last year.

“But I don’t just want to talk about the statistics because they are actually individual people.

“They are people’s lives that have been lost, they are families that have been impacted.

“We’ve seen accidents where we’ve seen multiple people’s lives lost and again, largely contributed to the fatal five to driver behaviour.

“Our message to drivers is be as patient as you possibly can.”

Originally published as Qld Police out in force during ‘Spring Break’ to curb horror road toll