Operation Excess - targeting the causes of harm on our roads

A day of action resulted in 66 vehicles stopped, 18 Traffic Offence Reports, 4 stop searches, 3 vehicles seized, 1 arrest for drug driving, 8 breath tests and 6 DrugWipe tests.

Operation Excess is our coordinated effort to crack down on “fatal five” offences including drink / drug diving, speed, seatbelts, distraction (including mobile phone use), and careless driving.

This is an ongoing operation that will run throughout the year with a particular focus on the summer months, when the volume of holiday traffic is high.

Inspector Jason Baxter, of Lincolnshire Police Specialist Operations, said, “This is not about picking on motorists. This is about taking action against those people who commit the most dangerous offences that cause the most harm on our roads. Over the coming months, we will see millions of visitors to Lincoln and the coast with hugely increased numbers travelling in and out of the county as they head off on holiday. The reality is that some of these people will not make their destination. Some of these people may never return home. We make no apology for stopping you because you are speeding, not wearing a seatbelt, under the influence, distracted or careless. You are putting yourself at risk and you risk the lives of others. There is no excuse.

“Yesterday’s operation raised an army of enforcers to achieve the biggest impact using both overt and covert cars. With competing priorities for our resources, and 5 ½ thousand miles of road to police, we have to be as efficient as we can be with what we have. Under Operation Excess, we have identified the top ten areas with the greatest number of collisions causing the highest harm. The focus here was the A17 and A15 around Holdingham Roundabout which are key travel routes into and out of Lincolnshire for holiday makers. Our efforts will continue at other high harm locations throughout the summer and beyond.”

It’s a sad fact that the summer months see the greatest harm caused on our roads. Over the last five years, the proportion of serious or fatally injured casualties in July and August stood at 23.2% compared to a 76.8% for the other ten months of the year.

In June, July and August of 2022 there were 8 fatalities and 123 people seriously injured on our roads. For the same time period in 2021, there were 163 people killed or seriously injured.

The table below shows the total numbers killed and seriously injured month by month, from 1 June 2018 to 31 May 2023 with the numbers peaking in July and August – the months in which residents and visitors flock in and out of the county for holidays.

Inspector Baxter added, “If you drive carefully and legally then this operation is not targeting you. Making the roads safer for all means holding those drivers to account who are committing offences, with the aim of reducing the harm that tragically, we see on a daily basis. This is a top priority for us and we know it’s an issue close to the hearts of our communities and something they want us to tackle. If you’ve used our roads, you have probably had a jaw-dropping, heart-stopping moment where you have seen someone do something incredibly reckless and potentially deadly. Operation Excess is about showing that dangerous and illegal driving will not be tolerated.”

Operation Snap: report a driving offence

Operation Snap is an online portal where you can upload footage of suspected driving offences. Every single submission is viewed and where the footage shows a traffic offence, action is taken.

You can report driving offences such as:

• Dangerous driving
• Driving without due care and attention
• Careless driving
• Not wearing a seatbelt
• Failing to stop at a red traffic light
• Crossing solid white lines
• Offences where a driver is clearly not in proper control of a vehicle

Find out more about Operation Snap.

Top tips for safe driving

• Don't use your mobile phone whilst driving – however good a driver you are, texting, looking at your phone, making or receiving a call (even if you are using 'hands free') can distract your attention.
• Put your seatbelt on and make sure all your passengers are using theirs. In a collision, an unbelted passenger in the back can kill or seriously injure a person in the front.
• Don't drive under the influence of drink or drugs. Any alcohol, even a small amount, can impair your driving, as can illegal substances. The likes of cannabis and cocaine can stay in your system for days and even weeks.
• Don’t speed and amend your driving to the conditions. A few miles per hour faster can mean the difference between life and death.
• Avoid distractions. When you are driving, make driving the only thing you are doing – make up, food, mobile phones can wait. If you have children in the car, stop if you need to and have plans in place to keep them occupied.
• Take a break - tiredness can kill. Plan to stop for a break regularly on a long journey.
• Anticipate and observe other road users and use your mirrors regularly.
• Keep your distance from the car in front.
• Only overtake when it is safe and legal to do so.
• Take care at junctions – check, check and check again.
• Know your route – if you are heading off on holiday check the route in advance.
• Ahead of a long journey, make sure your car is roadworthy, topped up with water and check your tyres for pressure and tread depth.
• Have a little patience! – from next week we will be re-launching our social media campaign targeting aggressive, impulsive and speeding drivers.