Dodgy drivers face holiday hurdles
November 15, 2007 - 5:02PM
Roadside drug testing will begin in Queensland next month, with Police Minister Judy Spence promising the toughest Christmas policing on the state's roads yet.
Over the coming holiday season drivers on Queensland roads will be monitored by covert police vehicles, known as Q-cars, as well as fixed speed cameras, and face drug tests for the first time.
Police on the Gold Coast would also be able to confiscate cars driven by repeat speeding offenders, or those fitted with illegal modifications.
Ms Spence said drug testing would save lives, with research showing six per cent of motorists admitted to driving after using illegal drugs.
"It will be the toughest Christmas ever for Queensland drivers," she told reporters in Brisbane on Thursday.
Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson said based on drug testing in Victoria, around 10 drivers would test positive each week - but he expected more.
"I think it's a sleeper, and it's a hidden contributor to the road toll," he said.
Last year, alcohol and drugs were identified as a contributing factor in 106 fatalities in Queensland, or 32 per cent of the road toll.
From December 1, anyone who tests positive to drugs behind the wheel can be fined up to $1,050 and be suspended from driving for up to nine months for their first offence.
The two-step saliva tests will detect marijuana, speed, ice and ecstasy.
An advertising campaign informing drivers about the testing process begins next week.
Meanwhile, Mr Atkinson says the state is waiting for the next "breakthrough" to cut the road toll.
This year's toll is likely to reach 400 for the first time in 12 years.
In 1973, there were 638 deaths, until a media campaign got the toll below 550, he said.
"Thirty-five years on almost, here we are, we had 335 road deaths last year, we have a far greater population, far more motorists, far more vehicles, and yet the road toll is about 300 less," Mr Atkinson said.
"What we need now is the next breakthrough, whatever that might prove to be."
