Lock and check your car this winter

By Lachlan Ellis

Ballan Police are putting a renewed focus on road safety this month, and are urging drivers to ensure their vehicles are ready for cold, wet conditions.

Sergeant Euan Jackson is Officer in Charge at Ballan Police Station, and urged people to be cautious on the road.

“There’s been many collisions in the past few weeks, it’s getting more and more prevalent. We’re coming to winter, and we basically need to check our cars are all roadworthy. We’ll be targeting particularly farm vehicles to make sure they’re roadworthy coming into the winter months, when the roads are more slippery and it’s harder to see,” Sergeant Jackson told the Moorabool News.

“That’ll be a big focus for us this month and in early June, leading up to the King’s Birthday long weekend.”

Hoon behaviour is also a particular focus of late, with an increase in hoon incidents occurring locally.

“We’re definitely targeting as much of the hoon behaviour as we can. We’re working in tandem with Moorabool Highway Patrol to come up here and help. The highways are our major concern, but also the outroads, particularly around Fiskville,” Sergeant Jackson said.

“The best way to get in touch if you witness hoon behaviour is to contact Crimestoppers or the Police Assistance Line (131 444), or Triple-000 if it’s really urgent.”

And of course, the ‘Lock Before You Leave’ message remains as important as ever – always lock your car, “even if you live on 200 acres”, Sergeant Jackson added.

“And if you find anything of yours has been stolen, contact us ASAP.”