Police across the state are preparing for their busiest night of the year, with record crowds expected to ring in the new year at popular vantage points.
Additional officers will be deployed on the water, in the air, and particularly on the roads, cracking down on dangerous driver behaviours.
It comes after Queensland recorded its worst year for fatal crashes in a decade, reaching 302 lives lost over the weekend.
Minister for Police and Emergency Services Dan Purdie said the Crisafulli Government was committed to keeping motorists safe and holding dangerous drivers to account.
“We will not tolerate drivers who disregard the Fatal Five, ruining other people’s celebrations and risking lives,” Minister Purdie said.
“As of this morning, 302 lives have tragically been lost on Queensland roads, marking a significant rise from this time last year, which saw 276 lives lost.”
“Many of these fatalities have been the result of speeding, drink driving and driver inattention – all of which could have been avoided.”
Operation Mistletoe, a high-visibility police operation to reduce road fatalities, has been in full swing since 13 December, 2024 and will run until 27 January, 2025.
“We are already seeing some troubling results from Operation Mistletoe, with 1,150 people caught driving under the influence,” Minister Purdie said.
“Driving under the influence can have deadly consequences, which is why you’ll see an increase in our enforcement efforts over the coming days.”
So far, police have dedicated 22,200 hours to Operation Mistletoe which has seen a total of 11,685 infringements issued to unsafe drivers.
According to police data released by the Crisafulli Government this morning, as of 11.59pm on December 29, Operation Mistletoe has resulted in:
70,328 breath tests with 631 positive results
2,234 drug tests with 519 positive results
6,922 infringements for speeding offences
142 infringements for seat belt offences
90 infringements for mobile phone offences
