THE toll of serious injury and death on Lancashire’s roads is unacceptably high – 1,000 people last year and more than 700 in the first nine months of this year.

And that is despite the controversially high number of speed cameras supposedly moderating driver behaviour.

There are many reasons for a level of casualties which is higher than that being sustained in war zones like Afghanistan and Iraq.

And any initiatives being taken to reduce them should be welcomed.

The two-month campaign announced today by Lancashire police, which will see 200 officers specifically targeting irresponsible and dangerous drivers, could help significantly to tackle this very real problem. Operation Pathway will focus public attention and hopefully make a lot of motorists think twice before acting recklessly.

Figures show clearly that a disproportionate amount of the carnage involves young drivers aged under 25 who lack experience or the caution that comes with age.

The pity is that while police are doing what they can, politicians won’t commit to a package of reforms, like those in our Wasted Lives campaign, which have been shown to reduce young driver casualties in a wide range of countries around the world.

This war is too big for police alone to win.