Police are urging Victorian motorists to avoid travelling to flood-affected regions as they launch a statewide road policing effort during the Melbourne Cup long weekend.
Named Operation Furlong, police aim to reduce road trauma with a highly visible presence on major arterials and freeways from Friday, October 28 to Tuesday, November 1.
“All the emergency services are working hard to respond to the floods, but we don’t want to be diverting resources to rescue people who have ignored the warnings and deliberately entered flood waters in their vehicles,” assistant commissioner road policing Glenn Weir said.
“In addition to this situation, we’re about to enter an incredibly high-risk period on our roads that saw 48 lives lost in 61 days last year — this is extremely concerning to us.
“We’ll be doing everything we can, but with police resources also supporting the flood efforts, we need people to take responsibility for their own actions on the roads more than ever.”
Police will focus on enforcing speed, with a particular focus on rural roads as more than 60 per cent of fatalities in November and December 2021 occurred in regional areas.
There have been 205 lives lost so far this year in Victoria — 24 more than 2021 and well above the five-year average of 188.
Parts of the state still have damaged roads and closures, so motorists are encouraged to monitor conditions and check the VicTraffic and VicEmergency apps for the latest updates before they travel.