Just in time for the silly season, NSW Police and Crime Stoppers NSW have launched a major crackdown on life threatening behaviour, zeroing in on drink, drug, dangerous and distracted driving.
In an Australian first, Crime Stoppers NSW is asking fellow road users to report anyone they see partaking in "the Four Ds" referenced above, all unacceptable behaviours that contribute to death on our roads.
Minister for Police and Emergency Services David Elliott said when launching the campaign: “Everyone deserves to enjoy the Christmas and New Year periods with their families without tragedy or chaos and we can all play a role when it comes to safety on our roads.”
Minister for Roads Andrew Constance added: “We’ve already seen far too many people killed and seriously injured on our roads this year and we need everyone in the community to help us put a stop to the tragedy and trauma.”
Over 280 people have died on NSW roads already this year.
Crime Stoppers NSW CEO Peter Price AM stressed the importance of this community-lead campaign.
“Never before have we asked the community to report these crimes and NSW Crime Stoppers is the first, not only in Australia, but around the world, to initiate this campaign,” Mr Price said.
“This is one of the most important campaigns we have ever embarked upon. These traffic issues are an offence and these offences often lead to innocent people being injured or killed which is absolutely devastating for their families.”
The following tips were provided to help road users report the Four Ds without jeopardizing their own safety:
- Use a passenger to record the time of the incident and the registration of the driver’s vehicle.
- If possible, keep dashcam vision of the incident and provide it to Crime Stoppers (NSW) or police.
- If it’s an emergency – where there is a threat to life or someone’s safety – please call Triple Zero (000) through a passenger, hands-free, or pull over somewhere safe.
- If it’s not an emergency, contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
This comes only a few weeks after Minister for Transport and Roads Andrew Constance announced changes to the road safety laws to stamp out drink and drug driving.
These included harsher penalties for those caught drink and drug driving from next year as well as the removal of speed camera warning signs over the next 12 months.
“This is about changing culture and changing behaviour. We’ve seen it happen with our world leading mobile phone detection program, where the rate of people offending has steadily declined. No warnings signs mean you can be caught anywhere, anytime and we want that same culture around mobile speed cameras,” Mr Constance said.
With people who ride bikes being some of the most vulnerable road — forced to mingle with 1 tonne vehicle with often inadequate room to operate — Bicycle Network commends this firm stance on making the road a safer place for all users.
We urge everyone to be safe, sensible and think of others on the roads this summer.