Police catch motorists doing 90mph on 30mph roads
Getty ImagesAlmost half of UK police forces have caught motorists driving more than 90mph (144km/h) on 30mph roads in the 20 months to the end of August, the RAC says.
A total of 48% of forces found drivers going more than three times the 30mph limit, while 90% had clocked people driving at 60mph.
The highest recorded speed on 30mph roads was 122mph in South Yorkshire. For 20mph roads, the top speed was logged by North Wales Police at 88mph.
The highest recorded speed on any road was 167mph on a 70mph stretch of the M1 in Leicestershire.
The largest difference between the speed recorded and the speed limit was 161mph on a 50mph in Somerset.
The data came from Freedom of Information requests the RAC made to 45 police forces relating to the period from January 2023 to the end of August 2024. Forty forces provided data.
The 10 highest speeds clocked on 30mph roads were:
- South Yorkshire Police: 122mph
- Sussex Police: 113mph
- Greater Manchester Police: 112mph
- West Yorkshire Police: 112mph
- West Mercia Police: 106mph
- Lancashire Constabulary: 104mph
- Nottinghamshire Police: 103mph
- Bedfordshire Police: 103mph
- West Midlands Police: 100mph
- Police Service of Northern Ireland: 100mph
RAC road safety spokesperson Rod Dennis said: "Although this data is a snapshot, it shines a light on the incredibly dangerous actions of a few, that are putting law-abiding road users at serious risk. Thankfully, the police were on hand to catch these drivers."
Chief Constable Jo Shiner, the National Police Chiefs' Council lead for roads policing, said choosing to drive above the speed limit amounted to "reckless, selfish and completely unacceptable" behaviour.
"We know that some incidents of going over the speed limit can be genuine mistakes or errors, but the speeds cited here are clearly drivers taking deliberate decisions to travel at excessive speeds, putting everyone at risk," she said.
A spokesman for the Department of Transport said there were tough penalties in place for drivers who speed.
"While our roads are among the safest in the world, we are committed to improving road safety, and recently relaunched our Think! campaign with a focus on speeding, particularly on rural roads."
Speed is the biggest factor reported in fatal road collisions, according to government data. In 2023 speed contributed to 888 fatalities, and more than 39,000 collisions of all severities.
More than 24,000 vehicles were caught on camera being driven at more than 100mph (161km/h) between 2019 and 2023, police data shows.