Last Wednesday was a busy day for one Queenstown police officer, who stopped 26 drivers in single shift on a range of offences including speeding, not wearing a seat belt, drink driving and using a cellphone while driving.
Police say all the drivers were spotted before anyone was hurt or killed.
Polcie said high-risk driving, including being behind the wheel while on the phone, is still relatively common in Queenstown and across New Zealand.
“It seems that the message isn’t really sinking in,” says road policing manager Senior Sergeant Sarah Thorn.
Police are trying to crack down on such offences as part of their long-term aim of having zero road deaths in New Zealand by 2030.
They say deaths and serious injuries on the road are not inevitabile but that Kiwis need to play their part by ensuring they are alert and distraction-free when they get behind the wheel.
“It is common for police to see people engaging in a couple of different poor driving practices at the same time, like using their phone and speeding, and when everyone around them is driving safely they stick out like a sore thumb."
Fifteen of the drivers were stopped for using a phone, four for not wearing a seat belt, five for speeding and two for drink driving.
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