Victoria’s first AFL grand final long weekend didn’t go well for 44 drivers in Maribyrnong and Hobsons Bay.
Victoria Police detected 28 offences in Maribyrnong and 16 in Hobsons Bay as part of Operation Scoreboard, a statewide road blitz that ran throughout the three-day break.
Across the state, 1900 drivers were tested for drugs, with 218 (one in nine) returning a positive result.
More than 121,000 drivers were breath-tested for alcohol, with 286 blowing over the legal limit.
In Maribyrnong, police caught two disqualified and two unlicensed drivers, three speeding drivers, four unregistered vehicles, 13 drivers for disobeying a traffic control, three seatbelt offences and one driver using a mobile phone. Two cyclists were also fined.
In Hobsons Bay, police detected two unregistered vehicles, two drink-drivers, nine disqualified drivers and one unlicensed driver. And they issued two tickets for not wearing a seatbelt.
Assistant Commissioner Doug Fryer said it was disappointing to see more than 500 impaired drivers across Victoria.
“Each one of them is lucky we caught them before they killed themselves or someone else,” he said. “Now that we’re moving into the spring racing and holiday season we need to understand that being irresponsible on the road can lead to death or serious injury.
“By all means go out and enjoy yourself, but if you plan to drink or choose to take drugs, plan a safe way home: use a designated driver, call a taxi or take public transport.”
Police recorded 163 offences in neighbouring Brimbank and Wyndham.
In Wyndham, police detected 30 unregistered vehicles, six drink-drivers, four disqualified and nine unlicensed drivers, and 19 speeders. They issued eight tickets for disobeying traffic controls, 10 for no seatbelt, and eight for mobile phone offences. They impounded two vehicles and one cyclist was fined.
In Brimbank, police detected 19 unregistered vehicles, three drink-drivers, eight disqualified and five unlicensed drivers, 15 speeders and one seatbelt and five mobile phone offences.
