A newly published police report has reported some troubling findings regarding the prevalence of drug driving in the UK
During December 2025, Essex Police conducted Operation Limit, a road safety strategy led by the Roads Policing Unit. The strategy included five days of dedicated action at targeted sites, alongside regular patrols. Data compiled during the operation has now been published along with data recorded across the whole of 2025.
In December 2025, the service made 307 arrests for driving while under the influence of drugs, taking the total for the year to 1874 arrests. This has prompted head of the Roads Policing Unit, Adam Pipe, to describe drug driving as an “epidemic”. He commented:
“The use of drugs and driving is clearly a matter of significant concern as we are increasingly finding a bigger proportion of impaired driving due to recreational drugs.”
During the course of Operation Limit, 103 arrests were made for drink driving, taking the year’s total to 1008 arrests. A further 101 arrests were made targeting drivers who were unfit to drive or who refused to provide specimens, taking the year’s total to 936 arrests.
In view of these worrying numbers, many police forces across Britain, are actively looking to introduce new schemes to tackle drink- and drug- impaired driving.
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