Victoria Police use Twitter to report on road blitz

Boys in blue tweet dangerous driving

Last night Victoria Police began a three-day blitz on dangerous driving, Operation Ardent, and for the first time used microblogging site Twitter to enforce the safe driving message among young drivers.

During the night 216 motorists caught were caught breaking the law, including 14 drivers who exceeded the alcohol limit and 85 who were speeding.

Not only did the blitz nab these motorists, but it also received plenty of attention on Twitter, as Deputy Commissioner for Road Policing, Ken Lay, tweeted throughout the night.

Lay started the night by tweeting: "Op Ardent is underway in Casey. I'll keep you updated all night. Can't wait to remove idiots from the road."

Then as the night progressed, the dangerous driving details were tweeted: "A Doveton man just blew .175, more than three times the limit. He told us he was heading back to the pub. He'll be walking."

Police also enforced driver safety: "In the first hours of Op Ardent we've nabbed four drunk drivers in Casey. In addition to their hangovers, all will lose their licences."

Many of Lay’s 2300 followers commented on the tweets throughout the night using the #KenLay hash tag, most applauding the initiative.

“Here's hoping #KenLay catches more hoons, drunks and people using mobile phones while driving,” said one Twitter user.

Comedian Dave Hughes also tweeted his support: "I've promised @victoriapolice I'd help them get followers. Get on board and next time you're in trouble they may go easier on the pep spray."

Victoria Police traffic inspector Dennis Watson said the police are warning drivers to think very carefully about their weekend driving behaviour.

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Tags twitterpolicevictorian government

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