MORE than 70 people were caught drink or drug-driving over the festive period.

Police checkpoints were set up across the county in December, with officers stopping random vehicles and carrying out breath tests on drivers, as well as checking vehicles for defects.

In total 1,101 breath tests were carried out - of those 1,028 people passed, while 73 either refused to give a sample or were found to be over the legal limit.

This is a failure rate of around seven per cent - an improvement on last year’s failure rate of nine per cent.

In the east of the county 252 were stopped and 27 of those failed the test.

In the south of the county 358 people were stopped and 17 of those failed the test. In the west of the county, which includes north Lancashire, 491 people were stopped and 29 of those failed the test.

Chief Inspector Sue Bushell, of Lancashire Police, said: “Drinking or taking drugs and then driving is unacceptable at any time and our efforts to catch those responsible are constantly ongoing.

“Unfortunately we know that at Christmas more people are willing to take the risk than at other times of year - and this was still the case for 2020, even with Covid-19 restrictions in place and pubs and bars closed.

“Although the figures are lower than last year – in large part because less vehicles were on the road – we must stress once again that a motorist driving under the influence is risking their licence, job, relationships with friends and family and, even worse, is putting themselves and others at risk of serious injury or even death. It is disappointing that even though there were fewer cars on the road we still found 73 people who thought it was acceptable to drink or drug-drive.

"Just one driver under the influence is one too many and we will continue to carry out regular enforcement activity and take action against those who break the law.”

Lancashire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Clive Grunshaw said: “Drink and drug-driving will not be tolerated here in Lancashire and targeted campaigns like this one over the festive period make a real difference.

“It also acts as a reminder for motorists that we will take necessary action against those who are putting their own lives and other people’s lives at risk.

“We are committed to making Lancashire’s roads as safe as possible, and continue to work all year round to ensure our roads are free from drug and drink drivers.”

If you would like to report someone who you suspect of driving whilst under the influence of alcohol or drugs, contact the police on 101. In an emergency, always dial 999.