FOUR new police have been added to the ranks of the highway patrol unit in Tamworth as it beefs up road safety initiatives.
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The extra officers are on top of the current staffing level, which sees officers patrol the city centre, surrounding areas and highways, as well as out to smaller centres like Barraba, Nowendoc, Nundle, Wallabadah, Willow Tree and Quirindi.
"The extra staff means we can target hot spots and problem areas, and detect those doing the wrong things before it's too late," Sergeant Michael Buko said.
"Locals will see an increase in officers doing duties within school zones, especially within the Tamworth area, because our kids safety is of the upmost importance."
Sergeant Buko has copped the wrath of many aggrieved motorists after the new staff started and immediately set about blitzes in the city, hitting drivers in the hip pocket for breaking the laws.
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He has received numerous complaints about drivers disobeying no parking signs and no stopping zones, parking illegally, using mobile phones while behind the wheel and general driving behaviour in school zones.
"As these occur in school zones, they attract demerit points but drivers need to do the right thing and obey the rules," Sergeant Buko said.
The new staff have already hit the roads, especially in the busy morning period - where the region has recorded a number of fatalities in recent months.
"The focus is to reduce the number of drug and drunk drivers, speeding drivers, and those motorists who aren't paying attention, whether it's because they're fatigued or distracted," Sergeant Buko said.
"There will be a focus on back roads and we will utilise the extra staff for those who are trying to avoid detection.
"People know we're on the highway everyday, but we're still detecting people speeding. Three were caught in an hour on the New England Highway and all three were drivers who were not thinking about what they were doing, they weren't paying attention.
"And we know that poor driver attitude can mean the difference on the roads between life and death.
"The four extra staff will put more officers on the roads everyday.
"This will allow the Traffic and Highway Patrol Command to patrol the centres, the country roads, thoroughfares between towns as well as the highways."