So far this year, 23 people have lost their lives on Territory roads. At the same time last year, 4 people had lost their lives and for the whole of 2023, 31 people lost their lives.

NT police continue to tackle the causal factors of crashes on Territory roads, these include Speed, Alcohol and Illicit drugs, Fatigue and Distraction.

At 5am this morning, police officers from the Darwin Traffic Operations, Batchelor Police Station and Adelaide River Police Station established a random breath and drug testing site on the Stuart Highway at Adelaide River.

Over the course of the operation, 62 drivers were subjected to random drug testing; one driver returned a positive result for cannabis. Four infringement notices were issued; one for a 30-year-old male driver for having a prohibited drug in his body and the others for speeding (all of which were between 31km/h and 45km/h over the speed limit).

Superintendent of the Territory Road Safety Division, Daniel Shean said “Road safety is everyone’s responsibility; not just the police. Speeding, inattention, driver fatigue, driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs continue to be the causal factors of trauma on our roads.

“Police can be anywhere at any time; if you take the risk by speeding, driving whilst distracted by a mobile device or driving after drinking or using drugs, you will get caught or worse, you may be involved in a serious crash resulting in life changing injuries or death. Do the right thing and keep everyone safe on our roads.”