A new fleet of drug and booze buses will give police the edge in the war against drink and drug drivers, as the Andrews Labor Government continues its push to make our roads safer.

Minister for Police Lisa Neville unveiled the concept designs of Victoria’s new drug and booze buses today.

Ms Neville said Brimarco and Byron Wade have been selected to build Victoria’s 10 new state-of-the-art vehicles, helping to support local jobs, as well as three new jobs at the manufacturer.

The Labor Government provided $15 million in the 2015-16 Victorian Budget to replace the state’s ageing fleet of buses.

These buses will roll out throughout 2018 with an aim to have the full fleet completed by the end of 2018.

The new fleet will give police even greater flexibility to target more locations, more often, to keep our roads safe.

Over the past five years, almost one in five drivers or riders killed on our roads was over .05. Since testing first began in 2004, one in 18 drivers have been caught with illicit drugs in their system.

The Labor Government is increasing police resources and ramping up enforcement on our roads, funding 100,000 drug tests a year, as well as 3135 additional new police officers – the first recruits to join the frontline in the coming months.

All Highway Patrol cars will also be fitted out with Automatic Numberplate Recognition technology – capable of scanning thousands of numberplates an hour – to remove unregistered and dangerous drivers from the road.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Police Lisa Neville

“Following one of the worst years on our roads, the new fleet of drug and booze buses will expand the reach of Victoria Police so they can target more locations, more often.”

“Our huge investment in Victoria Police won’t just make the community safer, it means more jobs for Victorians, thousands of additional police and support for local businesses that will build our new booze and drug buses.”