WYNDHAM police are stepping up efforts to remove distracted drivers from the roads, nabbing almost 20 people in one day using a mobile phone while behind the wheel.
Wyndham’s Sergeant Gary Drummond said road patrols in the CBD and surrounds prior to Christmas caught 19 drivers using phones.
He said many others were also caught in December and the first week of January.
Sergeant Drummond said drivers continued to break the law and ignore warnings from police.
“People think that they will not get caught but they are the ones causing accidents. They are oblivious to what is happening on the road and that is when accidents happen.”
Sergeant Drummond said a planned operation would aim to stamp out the use of mobile phones while driving.
The operation will be known as ‘Smart Phones, Dumb Drivers’.
“We’ve got an issue here [people using their phones] so that’s what we’ll be focusing on.”
Sergeant Drummond said most Wyndham drivers were well-behaved during the festive season.
Police conducted four operations from November 16 to January 6 as part of the statewide road enforcement campaign Summer Stay.
The operations included increased patrols around Wyndham and the use of numberplate scanners and booze buses to remove dangerous drivers from the road.
Sergeant Drummond said a high number of unregistered cars, and disqualified and unlicensed drivers were caught over 52 days and police recorded 607 traffic offences.
Assistant Commissioner Robert Hill said it was disappointing to see people who knew they shouldn’t be behind the wheel put other roads users in danger. “Unauthorised and impaired drivers have no place on our roads at any time of the year, yet we continue to see significant numbers detected.”
