Drink-driving crackdown after 690 arrests made

Cambridgeshire police officers have carried out roadside checks as part of a drink driving campaign launched on 1 December

More than 650 drivers who were suspected of being under the influence of alcohol or drugs were arrested across Cambridgeshire this year.

Home Office data showed Cambridgeshire police have breath-tested nine drivers per 1,000 members of the population in 2022 - almost double the national average of five drivers.

A campaign was launched to crack down on drink and drug-driving and more than 40 venues have signed up to the scheme.

Police said 230 people were killed or injured on the county's roads since 2022.

A total of 690 suspected drink and drug drivers have been arrested in Cambridgeshire so far this year

In one fatal incident in February, Tomasz Zylinski caused a head-on crash which killed one man and left three seriously injured.

In the moments after the collision, he was described by a witness as "stinking of alcohol".

Zylinski was later found to be more than three times the legal drink-drive limit and was sentenced to eight years behind bars.

In July, Asadul Karim smashed into the side of a car at 100mph, instantly killing a 36-year-old man waiting at a red light. Karim was jailed for 12 years.

More recently, on Wednesday, officers arrested a woman in Huntingdon after she blew 193 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of breath - more than five times the legal drink drive limit of 35 .

On Thursday, she was charged with drink driving, driving without insurance and without a licence.

PC Sam Sparkes said the message was simple: 'Do not drink or take drugs and drive.'

Cambridgeshire Police said the number of arrests had so far decreased compared to 812 made in 2022.

PC Sam Sparkes, from the road policing unit, said: "Knocking at someone's door at any time of the year to tell them the life-changing news that their family member will not be coming home is difficult, especially at Christmas.

"One incident which will always stay with me is where a drunk driver and their child died on Christmas day - being the one to tell the family this news was heartbreaking."

Home Office data said, Cambridgeshire had one of the highest rates of breathalysing in 2020

As part of its new campaign, police are promoting the 'I'm DES' scheme which sees the 41 participating venues give out free or discounted draught soft drinks to designated drivers.