ORANGE’s report card for drivers over the last two consecutive weekends should surely read “could do better”.
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During the highly publicised Operation Tortoise run over the Easter weekend Orange drivers disappointed police with 70 drivers caught for a range of offences from just after midnight on Thursday until Sunday morning.
It will be interesting as Orange police compile the statistics from yesterday’s phase of the operation including random breath tests on the main roads in and out of Orange - let us hope the results are more positive than the previous three days.
However if the results of the previous weekend are to be taken into account, during a random blitz one in eight drivers was found to be driving with drugs or alcohol or both in their system, it doesn’t auger well for the overall results of the weekend.
When it comes to drink-driving many drivers remain oblivious to the fact that a conviction means a criminal record - a record which could hinder someone’s chance of landing that new job, or getting a passport to travel overseas.
Adding to the backlog of cases in court in the coming weeks and months will no doubt be the usual appeals against the loss of a licence during a double demerits weekend.
Through their lawyers offenders will take up valuable court time arguing they need their licence or they will lose their job, or they need to run the kids to school or one of the many other reasons that are put to the magistrate on a regular basis to plead their case.
And clearly this situation is not set to change as drivers despite the huge amount of publicity about double demerits coming into the Easter break continue to take chances and adopt the it won’t happen to me mentality.
Let’s hope with the campaign for the Anzac long weekend to kick in later in the week, Orange’s drive report card will read “much improved”.