Dwindling numbers of traffic patrol officers could put lives at risk in the Westcountry, a road safety charity warns.

Devon and Cornwall police has seen a 16 per cent drop in the number of specialist traffic officers in the force area over two years, from 72 to 61.

Neighbouring Avon and Somerset reported a 7 per cent drop between 2009 and 2011, from 67 to 62, according to figures obtained by the organisation Brake under the Freedom of Information Act.

Ellie Pearson, from Brake, said specialist officers played a “vital role in preventing deaths” and called for a halt in cuts in order to put safety first.

“We are very worried that, by cutting the numbers of police, you are increasing the chances of crashes on the road and potentially the number of people who will needlessly be killed,” she added.”

Police forces said the number of people killed or injured on roads had fallen despite the reduction.

Devon and Cornwall Police, which saw the biggest fall in total officer numbers of any other force in the region as it attempts to slash £47m over four years, said the reductions “will have an impact on our style of policing”.

It added: “However, the number of people killed and seriously injured are still falling, down 11.5 per cent from last year despite reductions in staff.

“Our visibility remains high compared to most other forces, and people living in Devon and Cornwall have the highest level of confidence in the police across the country.

“We also still retain our specialist roads policing skills to deliver this important policing capability.”

Home Office figures showed there were 213 fewer officers in Devon and Cornwall at the end of September last year than there had been 12 months previously.

The drop of 6.1 per cent took the total number down to 3,312, with one in five police officer posts – or 700 out of the current 3,500 – set to go during the austerity programme.

The next largest fall in numbers was Avon and Somerset which shed 155 officers over the period, a reduction of 4.7 per cent.

Across England and Wales, the number of police officers fell to its lowest level in a decade at the end of September last year, with more than 6,000 fewer than the previous year.

Nationwide, Brake said the number of traffic police out catching drunk and dangerous drivers has been slashed by 11.6 per cent in five years.

It said “dramatic and widespread” cuts over the past decade had reduced numbers from 7,525 in 1999 to 6,511 in 2005.

The charity says this will lead to more drivers thinking they can get away with life-threatening illegal behaviour, like driving drunk, drugged, on a mobile phone or driving an unroadworthy vehicle.

Campaigners point to figures last week from the Association of Chief Police Officers’ Christmas breath-testing campaign which showed an 8 per cent fall in breath tests carried out compared to 2010.

Alan Jones, chairman of the Police Federation Roads Policing Group, said policing the roads should be “a priority for chief constables”.