Over the course of Operation Safe Arrival, which ran from December 21 to January 4, police said they charged 992 people with drink-driving on NSW roads, up from 894 last year.
They said during the operation period, there were 15 fatal crashes on the state’s roads, which resulted in the deaths of 17 people.
There were also 1995 major crashes, which resulted in 654 people being injured, police said.
Commander of Traffic Services Assistant Commissioner John Hartley described as alarming the rise in the number of people charged with drink-driving.
‘What was concerning was the increase in people caught drink-driving,’ he said.
‘Nearly 100 more people were caught this year, showing a blatant disregard to the road rules, their safety and the safety of other motorists.’
He said a review of all deadly crashes had shown that ‘most were as a result of drivers disobeying the law or making a mistake which has proved fatal’.
During Operation Safe Arrival, police also issued a total of 15,452 traffic infringement notices, compared with 17,663 last year.
They issued 11,903 infringements for speeding, 726 fewer than last year.
Source: Sky News Australia