End-of-school festivities and end-of-year-parties are on notice - with Operation Curdled hitting arterials across greater Ballarat this weekend.
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"It's coming into summer, it's getting hotter - and with Operation Curdled, police are turning up the heat as well," Sergeant Craig Kelso said.
"The festive season is on the way - but so is the festival season."
The region's first Operation Curdled - a reference to an upcoming music event - gets going from 4pm Friday and will focus on roads across Ballarat, Pyrenees, Moorabool, Hepburn and Golden Plains.
Highway Patrol officers from Ararat will also be on hand, as well as State Highway Patrol, booze buses, the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator and other police resources.
The blitz overlaps with Operation Fahrenheit, a statewide kicking off late Thursday.
Both operations will wrap up Sunday - and both are focusing on speed, as well as drivers impaired by alcohol, drugs or distractions.
Operation Curdled will also focus on regulatory offences such as unlicensed driving and the use of unroadworthy or unregistered vehicles.
The number of unregistered cars has been gradually creeping up since stickers were ditched.
"It's the lead up to the festive season and the busiest time of the year for police. We want everyone to be at the table on Christmas Day with friends and family," Sergeant Kelso said.
"We don't want loved ones to become another statistic in the road toll."
He - and dozens of other police from the Ballarat and Moorabool police serviced areas - attended a five-person fatality in Daylesford on November 5. It came a day after a Clunes crash which claimed the life of Maryborough cricket identity Craig Jennings.
"We make no apologies for our actions," Sergeant Kelso said.
"If what we do inconveniences you on your trip for five minutes, then so be it.
"Getting an impaired driver off the road could save someone's life."
Operations Curdled and Fahrenheit come ahead of the region's music festival season.
Spilt Milk gets going in Victoria Park Ballarat from December 2, while the Meredith Music Festival begins December 8 - and Beyond the Valley gets going at Barunah Plains from December 28.
Statewide, Operation Roadwise runs between December 15 and the New Year.
The next local police road blitz will hone in on very large vehicles and has been dubbed Operation Squidgy - a reference from the Austin Powers movie franchise.
Gabrielle Hodson
'All-rounder' journalist since 1993. I've worked in print, radio, TV & online as well as radio & TV producing and radio presenting. Working on Wadawurrung land. There are 7.9 billion stories out there. I'd love to hear yours...
'All-rounder' journalist since 1993. I've worked in print, radio, TV & online as well as radio & TV producing and radio presenting. Working on Wadawurrung land. There are 7.9 billion stories out there. I'd love to hear yours...
