THE news that there will be fewer traffic police on Dorset’s roads will come as welcome news to those drivers who feel it their divine right to break the law.

Not wearing seat belts, rabbiting away with a mobile phone clamped to your ear, texting messages to loved ones while motoring along and batting along at high speeds are all offences that the worst of our drivers believe are not worth fussing about.

The fact that such offences were responsible for the majority of the 21 deaths on our roads in 2009 will mean nothing to these people, nor will the fact that fatal and serious injury accidents fell to an all-time low last year.

Why? Because of Dorset police’s intensive and deservedly successful Operation No Excuse campaign that made last year a particularly testing time for poor drivers... and cheered those who try to stay within the law.

That the campaign’s ‘visibility’ and concentration is likely to be less intense has prompted words of warning from the AA, as officers previous seconded are moved to other areas of social need within the force.

The police maintain that awareness of the campaign has been “huge” and I’d like to think that we have played our part in highlighting its success and impact in our pages throughout the year.

Whether the decision proves costly may take time to show, but it’s genuinely hoped that it doesn’t spoil all that good work from 2010.