FURTHER INFORMATION

The Road Policing Annual Delivery Plan has been developed to align with Police Scotland’s strategic priorities and Transport Scotland’s Road Safety Framework to 2030.

The National Road Policing Delivery Board drives performance in this respect and uses analytical information to ensure actions are coordinated and effective.

TABLE

It should be noted that at the time of writing some of the fatalities included in the current figures are being investigated for medical or other causational factors and may be removed from total figures.

Currently, 3 of the 4 Road Safety Framework to 2030 targets are not currently on course to be met. The remainder of this report describes Road Policing’s prevention and intervention initiatives to further enhance our contribution to the reductions sought.Whilst the priority of reducing deaths on Scotland’s roads remains the focus for road policing, and partners engaged in road safety interventions, the marked reductions in serious and minor injury road traffic collisions provides a positive out-look and trend.

Recent reviews of how engagement with partners can be more effective has delivered new thematic groups, led by Scottish Government Road Safety personnel and supported by key experts from Police Scotland, RoSPA, Cycling Scotland, Institute of Advanced Motoring (IAM) and Road Safety Scotland. The improved approach to capturing analytical profile recommendations and empowering agencies to focus on these to implement strategies to deliver improvements.

Current YTD reductions for serious injury RTC’s, compared to the previous year is -35% and for reductions for those slightly injured is currently showing at -33%. A welcome reduction in children being seriously injured is also in positive territory with a reduction of 27% (14 fewer children injured)

The reduction of speed limits in most towns and cities to 20mph, effective use of new mobile speed detection units and dedicated national fatal 5 campaigns all provide influence in this arena.

Drink/Drug Driving Priority

Road Policing are responsible for the creation of an annual calendar of road safety activity. This campaign calendar aligns with the National Police Chiefs’ Council UK-wide calendar, with additional Scotland-only campaigns. It has been necessary to focus national attention on the increasing number of persons failing roadside drug-wipes through dedicated campaigns.

The Summer Drink & Drug Drive Campaign ran between 30 June and 13 July. It saw an increase in recorded drink and drug driving offences over the equivalent initiative last year, up from 357 to 421.

Overall results from the Summer Drink/Drug Drive Campaign were as follows:
RP Breath-Tests – 574 with 50 positive tests – 9% positivity
Local Policing – 201 with 31 positive tests – 15% positivity rate Overall: 775 Breath-Tests with 81 positives, which equates to an 11% positivity rate.
RP Drug-Wipes – 257 with 157 positives – 58% positivity rate.

The increase in detections is in line with national year-to-date growth for drug driving and can be attributed to officers enhancing focus on the priority to reduce killed or seriously injured persons on the roads alongside targeted responses to intelligence packages, ANPR operations and links to road crime through SCD Organised Crime Intelligence contacts.

In line with analysis on increasing detections determined from the summer campaign, a dedicated Police Scotland drug driving operation was carried out from 14 – 18 August 2025.

Media messaging from both internal corporate communications and external partners continue to support the priority with enforcement and educational messaging. This includes increased awareness through lived experience forms part of impact statements from family members who have lost loved ones. This included a recent testimonial from Mr Ian Dominick who lost his son Ross in a motorcycle collision near to Glencoe on 23 July 2023.

Powerful messaging such as this plays a key role in educating road users during dedicated campaigns as to the critical importance of driving safely and always being aware of others on the roads.

The annual Festive Drink and Drug Drive Campaign will commence on 01 December 2025 and be supported by additional officers trained in drug wipes in Orkney, East Ayrshire and the Banff and Buchan region of A Division as part of an incremental expansion of drug-wipes.

Drug Wipe Incremental Roll-Out – Operation Seltern

Since the section 5A Road Traffic Act 1988 legislation was adopted in Scotland in October 2019, Police Scotland has recorded higher than anticipated drug driving detection levels with year-on-year increases in detections and an increasing detection rate amongst road users.

Consequently, the Force Executive has supported a plan to incrementally expand drug wipe training and provision into Local Policing areas, building on a successful model created during a pilot scheme in the Shetland Islands from 01 December 2024.

Operation Seltern has been created to capture the development required across various disciplines to deliver the drug-wipe specialism in an incremental and carefully controlled manner.

The initial incremental expansion has been funded through the provision of £90,000.00 from the OSD Road Policing budget.

This funding is intended to cover the training costs, purchasing of drug-wipes and the costs associated with toxicology testing from an out-sourced partner of SPA Forensic Services.

On 07 August 2025, a briefing was delivered to the Forensic Services Committee that presented the incremental expansion plan for all Local Policing areas and the projected forensic toxicology demand and associated cost. Further detailed conversations are ongoing between Police Scotland and SPA to jointly develop these plans

At this stage, the commitment of £90,000.00 from Police Scotland for the initial stage of the plan is the only funding provision in place to support the expansion. Any further developments in this area will require to be delivered as part of a sustainable financial model, and partnership discussions are ongoing in this regard.

The SPA Forensic Services, Long-Term Sustainable Model (LTSM) for Criminal Toxicology business case is the programme for laboratory expansion authorised under the option of “Invest to automate” and is underway to meet the demand which will be presented in future years.

The focus on drug-wipe roll-out was captured on one of the recommendations made in the HMIC(S) review of road policing.

Safety Camera Units (SCUs)

Safety Camera Units (SCUs) are an important part of our efforts to influence driver behaviour across Scotland. To maximise effectiveness, the Programme Office and Police Scotland are working with external agency Agilysis to review the SCUs, to ensure that we have the right staff in the right places to optimise their road safety contribution.

In the interim, strong progress in performance has been achieved since June in deploying the new fleet of electric enforcement vehicles and operational plans for 2025/26 have been approved.

HMICS Recommendations and Areas for Development - Governance

On 04 February 2025 the Force Change Board decided that the 13 recommendations and 13 areas for development should be progressed as part of a holistic review of Police Scotland’s approach to keeping people safe on the roads. Work is ongoing to implement the recommendations, and this is a key focus for road policing and Police Scotland.

A Governance Board for Road Policing, overseeing the response to the recommendations has been established and meets monthly to assess progress towards each recommendation and area for development. The Governance Board incorporates an improvement plan for which actions are delegated to appropriate departmental leads. This entire process is led by the ACC Operational Support and is monitored by observers from the Scottish Police Authority and HMIC(S) are invited to attend.

On 25 August 2025, the Governance Board met and discussed the draft Road Policing Improvement Plan 2025 and reviewed the progress of all 13 recommendations which are being recorded and tracked on a master action log. For reference an overview of role of the HMICS Governance and Assurance board alongside the status of each recommendation is included at Appendix 1.

A further progress update will be provided to the board in 6 months’ time.

The work being progressed in relation to the recommendations is a fundamental and focus of informing and addressing the broader but complementary commitment, within our 3-year business plan, to identify and implement a sustainable model of policing Scotland’s roads.

Road Policing – National Good Work

Operation Portaledge - Criminal Network Disruption & Seizures

Road policing officers have played an active and critical role in the success of Operation Portaledge, and intelligence led vehicle stops. Working closely with OCCTU officers, road policing has been involved in significant disruption of OCG assets, seizing hundreds of thousand pounds worth of cash through POCA, controlled drugs in supply quantities and counterfeit items. Using specialist pursuit training, tactics and equipment, road policing officers have been involved in numerous vehicle stops and subsequent arrests of nominals and during which time they have recovered:

£540,000 drug recoveries (Cocaine, Cannabis and various other drugs)

£23,000 Cash

9 x stolen vehicles (Value in excess of £250K)

Operation Scalis

Close and effective collaboration with the Motor Insurance Bureau (MIB) has created an enforcement model of national joint operations with RP in relation to pursuing action against uninsured drivers. Local Policing officers have also contributed to scaling up operations in communities where MIB and Operation Tutelage in intelligence and information has highlighted increased rates of uninsured drivers. Significant detections have been acquired across the country.

NPCC – Operation Spotlight – 01 to 31 July 2025

This RP campaign aligned with an NPCC UK-wide campaign over these dates, intended to educate and protect drivers against the Fatal 5 risk taking driving behaviours of speeding, drink & drug driving, using a handheld mobile phone, careless driving and not wearing a seatbelt. During the campaign, Police Scotland officers detected a total of 3609 Fatal 5 offences, with the Safety Camera Unit detecting an additional 8864 speeding offences.

Operation Roll 2 & Operation Oclate

Road Policing committed significant resources to both Operation Roll 2 and Operation Oclate and the performance of all those engaged in management, coordination and operational deployment in patrol areas was referenced in a highly positively way. US Government and Secret Service personnel were impressed by both priority and ancillary escorting arrangements with the National Motorcycle Unit excelling in providing effective “Vipex” escorts to several VIPs.

Abnormal Load – Onshore Renewable Demands

The VRS and Abnormal Load team continue to deliver exceptional work to satisfy abnormal load escort demand. Increased requests for support from national infrastructure Windfarm Projects have led to significant additional flexibility and innovation to ensure customers are satisfied with the provision of policing services. Bespoke Windfarm and Heavy Industry Projects are now being delivered on a regular basis with highly efficient logistical arrangements.

Operation Mitroform

Road Policing Officers have supported Local Policing Operations in relation to large scale theft of cooking oil by Bulgarian nationals throughout the West Command area. Effective targeting and disruption of subjects and vehicles using intelligence packages, has led to the apprehension of key nominals following successful pre-emptive vehicle stops.