Police arrest 43 people after crackdown on drink and drug driving

An initiative to tackle drink and drug driving by Wiltshire Police has resulted in the arrest of 43 drivers in just a week.

The week-long campaign was led by the National Police Chief’s Council (NPCC) and ran from 23rd – 29th August. The campaign saw 13 drivers arrested for drug driving offences and 30 arrested for drink driving.

The arrests were the result of a multitude of proactive stop checks by officers, reports from members of the public and, sadly, collisions.

Police Sergeant Will Ayres from the Road Policing Team said this latest focus has highlighted drink driving as a particular concern.

He explained: “During this summer’s campaign there has been a notable difference in offending with a much higher proportion of drivers arrested and investigated for drink driving offences compared with previous campaigns.

“I believe this is due to the relaxation in Covid restrictions, night time economy reopening and previous positive campaigns targeting drug drivers and habitual drug users meaning they are already disqualified from driving.

“Of the collisions where drivers were found to be either drink or drug driving, three people suffered serious injuries.

“This is a stark reminder of the dangers of drink and drug driving – just because the NPCC campaign is over it does not mean that officers will not be actively targeting these offences and I would urge the public to call in if they suspect a drink or drug driver.”

Drug driving is one of the fatal four factors that increase the risk of road users being significantly injured or killed if involved in a road traffic collision.

The others are excess speed, driving whilst using a mobile phone and not wearing a seatbelt.

If you suspect someone of drink or drug driving or to report any other motoring offences taking place and it is ongoing call 999, but only if it is safe to do so.

For non-immediate motoring offences, you can either report online or call 101.