By RACHEL SPENCER

DISTURBING new figures released by police have revealed that the drink-drive message is falling on deaf ears in Warrington.

Throughout the Christmas period, traffic police in the town launched a vigorous initiative to wage a war on drink-drivers.

Random road checks took place across the town and every driver at the scene of an accident was breathalysed. There was also an extensive media campaign, urging people to shop the road rats.

But traffic officers were stunned to discover that many drivers completely ignored their warnings.

Sgt Tony Symonds from Warrington's traffic department, who co-ordinated the campaign, said: "On the checks that I participated in, one in three drivers stopped said they'd had a drink, which is very worrying."

A massive 43 people were arrested on suspicion of drink-driving between December 4 and January 2.

Twenty motorists scraped through a second breath test, and were just below the legal limit, while another 18 drivers were charged with drink-driving on breathalyser results. Five drivers are awaiting the results of blood tests.

Sgt Symonds said that the highest reading was three times the legal limit and added that one male driver, who was stopped in the morning, provided a reading which was double the legal limit.

"This campaign is successful in the wrong way," he added.

"We would rather make no arrests and send people on their way.

"The results are very concerning, especially when you stop people and they openly admit they have had a drink.

"People have still got the mentality that they can have one or two drinks but there are a lot of things that will affect the reading. This is not the result we wanted."