Police are disappointed with the results of Operation Safe Arrival after 28 were killed during the 18-day operation.
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Operation Safe Arrival began on Friday December 15 2017 and continued until 11.59pm on New Years Day, with the aim of reducing the number of accidents, injuries and deaths on NSW roads.
The campaign targeted dangerous driving behaviour, which included speeding, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, phone use and not wearing seatbelts.
There was an increased police presence on NSW roads and in the Southern Highlands alone, more than 17000 random breath tests were conducted.
There were 531 speeding tickets issued, 10 seat belt tickets issued and 218 other tickets issued to road users in the Highlands over that period.
Deputy Commissioner Specialist Support, Catherine Burn, said lives will continue to be lost if the community doesn’t work together and change their attitudes towards road safety.
“The New Year has just started and we don’t want to see more carnage on our roads. We had 392 people die on NSW roads in 2017, and 28 died during Operation Safe Arrival,” she said.
“The biggest tragedy is that most of the lives that were lost throughout the year and during the operation were avoidable.
“Simply put, it is poor decisions that are killing people on our roads and it’s not just the person making poor decisions that are dying, they are often taking innocent people with them.”
Bernard Carlon, Executive Director of the Centre for Road Safety said the big three killers on our roads are driving too fast, tired drivers and drivers who've had too much to drink.
"The big three resulted in too many deaths and serious injuries in 2017.
"We all need to renew our commitment to safe behaviour behind the wheel if we're going to see the road toll come down again," Mr Carlon said.