Drivers in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, can expect to see more police on the roads after a sharp rise in drug-driving arrests. Figures released in early February 2026 (reported 7 February 2026) show that drug-related arrests have overtaken drink-driving as the main reason for impaired-driving arrests across the county, prompting an escalation in roadside testing.
Essex Police data reported to local media show officers made 228 drug-driving arrests in January 2026, up from 130 in January 2025. The force says it is concentrating enforcement on coastal routes and local streets in the Tendring district, including targeted activity around Clacton-on-Sea.
The increased checks are being carried out alongside the Safer Essex Roads Partnership (SERP). Essex Police and SERP say officers will use rapid oral-fluid screening kits (for example, DrugWipe) to check for substances such as cannabis and cocaine at the roadside. The Tendring local policing team has identified hotspots including Olivers Road and Meredith Road as focus areas for targeted enforcement as part of wider efforts to reduce serious collisions.
Adam Pipe, Head of Roads Policing for Essex Police, described the surge in drug-driving arrests as an “epidemic” and said the force has stepped up specialist enforcement, including dedicated days of action, to deal with the trend. Essex Police said it has reallocated resources toward specialist drug-enforcement activity to support these operations.
Operation Limit — the force’s countywide campaign tackling drink and drug driving — underpins the increased activity. An Essex Police spokesperson said the force is adopting a “zero tolerance” approach to drivers found over the drug limits. Roger Hirst, the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex, has repeatedly warned that road crime (including speeding, drink- and drug-driving and mobile phone use at the wheel) accounts for more deaths and serious injuries in the county than most other crimes combined.
Local drivers are being urged to take extra care, avoid driving while impaired and expect a visible police presence on routes around Clacton as enforcement continues through spring 2026.
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