Queenstown police say drivers need to make better decisions after 45 infringement notices were issued for using a mobile phone or not wearing a seatbelt during a two-day operation last week.
The operation, run in Queenstown and Frankton on Wednesday and Thursday, showed too many drivers were disregarding their safety and that of others, police said in a statement.
Sergeant Matt Hargreaves said any driver using a non-hands-free mobile phone was not paying attention to the road.
Many fatal or serious injury crashes in New Zealand involved distracted drivers.
"You’re placing yourself, anyone else in your vehicle and all other road users at risk."
Not wearing a seatbelt, which could save a driver’s life in a crash, was "just stupidity", Sgt Hargreaves said.
The operation was just a snapshot of driving habits in the resort, and police would continue to target such behaviour with similar operations.
"Ultimately, we want to prevent people getting killed or injured on our roads, but that requires better decisions by those drivers who continue to take unacceptable risks," he said.
