Police Operation Argus commenced at a minute past midnight on Thursday morning.

The four-day operation is a one-off additional statewide policing operation designed to crack down on drivers doing the wrong thing on the state’s roads.

The operation is taking place as a direct response to the significant increase in the number of lives lost on Victorian roads this year.

The major focus of the operation will be on impaired driving, motorcycles, excessive speed, driver distraction and not wearing seatbelts.

Although it’s not a long weekend, the community can expect to see additional police activity on the roads, particularly in East Gippsland.

The number of fatalities on country roads is alarmingly high compared to previous years.

The road policing adviser for the Eastern region, Senior Sergeant Jerry Barlow, said motorists are urged to consciously think about their driving and the choices they are making.

“We all have a responsibility, not only to ourselves but to each other, to take care,” he said. “This operation will be very similar to the National Day of Action which was conducted on the Tuesday of the previous weeks.” Snr Sgt Barlow said a high police visibility presence would be on all of East Gippsland’s major roads.

The operation will also specifically focus on motorcycles in the lead-up to the motorcycle season, which is traditionally between October and April.

Meanwhile, police in Lakes Entrance say they’ve had an escalation in complaints about trail bike riders in the Colquhoun Forest over the past two months.

Police have begun patrolling the area in relation to reports of unregistered bikes in the area.

Last Sunday evening, a local rider was intercepted and found to be unlicenced and riding an unregistered motorbike.

The motorbike was impounded for 30 days and the rider will receive a summons for the offences.