Police in the nation’s capital have blasted motorists who took part in hoon gatherings across Canberra following this year’s Summernats 38 car festival.
In the days leading up to and during Summernats, ACT Policing issued 85 vehicle defect notices and seized 19 cars, the latter figure representing a huge increase on the five vehicles seized last year.
While just six arrests were made at Summernats, an additional eight arrests were made throughout the Australian Capital Territory for impaired driving and dangerous driving, with an extra 197 traffic infringement notices for speeding and other unsafe driving behaviour also issued.
Two notable incidents involving out-of-state motorists served as the lowlights of the event, the first occurring on the Tuesday prior to the start of Summernats when a VN Holden Commodore on expired Victorian club registration plates was seized after it was found to have performed burnouts on the Barton Highway in Nicholls the day before.
The burnouts were captured not only via CCTV footage but also by onlookers who posted videos to social media.
On Saturday night, a VF HSV GTS-R was performing burnouts among a crowd on a residential street in O’Connor, with police subsequently placing its driver from Queensland under arrest.
The man, who later posted footage of the burnouts to social media (below), was issued with an immediate suspension notice which prevented him from driving in the ACT for 90 days. His car was also seized but has been claimed to have since been retrieved.
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Fortunately for the man, the ACT doesn’t have the ability to crush impounded and forfeited cars, unlike Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory.
In the wake of the busy weekend, ACT Policing Detective Inspector Mark Steel slammed those who had taken part in dangerous driving gatherings.
“Unfortunately, police responded to several incidents of dangerous driving across the weekend including at a gathering in O’Connor,” Detective Inspector Steel said.
“This type of behaviour on our roads is unacceptable. If a driver loses control of their vehicle, they could seriously injure themselves and others.”
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