Vining said a drink-driving court summons was issued, and a vehicle was impounded due to a disqualified driver.
“There are still far too many drivers using and being distracted by their devices whilst in charge of motor vehicles.”
Last year, truck driver Sarah Hope Schmidt killed 22-year-old Caleb Baker of Napier in a crash on the Hawke’s Bay Expressway caused by her phone use.
Schmidt spent 44 minutes using her phone during a two-hour run between Dannevirke and Napier Port in the early morning of February 9, 2024.
After beginning her return journey down the Hawke’s Bay Expressway, she was using her phone when she ploughed her 30-tonne Volvo truck into the back of Baker’s Toyota Hilux, at the rear of a stationary queue of traffic.
Vining said after the expressway checkpoint, impairment checkpoints were conducted in Fernhill, Flaxmere and Havelock North.
In Fernhill, 275 drivers were tested, with four infringements issued for drink-driving.
In Flaxmere, more than 750 drivers were tested, with two infringements issued, and two drivers summonsed for excess breath alcohol.
In Havelock North, more than 300 drivers were tested, with three infringements issued, and a driver was summonsed for being more than twice the legal drink-driving alcohol limit.
“Every time a member of the public is stopped by police, they should expect to be breath tested, regardless of time and location,” Vining said.
“In the lead-up to Christmas and the New Year, and through the school holidays when traffic volumes around Hawke’s Bay can surge, police will be looking to identify and remove as many impaired drivers from the road as possible.”
Michaela Gower joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2023 and is based out of the Hastings newsroom. She covers Dannevirke and Hawke’s Bay news and loves sharing stories about farming and rural communities.
