A POLICE chief today pledged to continue a hard-hitting clampdown on drink drivers after 13,000 breath tests were carried out during a month-long festive purge.

Figures have revealed that the number of injury accidents in Lancashire were halved during the campaign from December 2 to January 2.

The scale of the crackdown is made clear when the 13,000 breath tests are compared to 8,623 during a whole year in 1994-95.

Chief Inspector Ian Bell, head of traffic and road safety for Lancashire Police, said there had been a 57 per cent reduction in injury accidents, from 507 last year to 218, the lowest recorded in Lancashire. He said similar roadside purges on drink drivers were likely to take place during the rest of this year.

Although figures for the number of drivers who tested positive are not being released by police, Mr Bell praised motorists for heeding the drink-drive warning.

Mr Bell said: "We are extremely pleased with the reduction in injury accidents, the lowest recorded in the county.

"It is quite apparent that a lot of drivers have taken no alcohol whatsoever and people have looked for alternative means of transport.

"We will be treating drink driving as a year-round problem on the back of this success and looking to carry out further exercises."

Lancashire Police are also backing Government proposals for a revamp of drink drive policy in a bid to cut the number of deaths.

The Government is studying the laws of other European countries, which include a two-tier penalty system. Motorists exceeding a lower limit are given lighter punishments.

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