Speeding motorists ‘put lives at risk’ warn police following ‘truly shocking’ lockdown driving
Speeding drivers in Cambridgeshire warned after lockdown. Picture: CAMBS POLICE - Credit: Archant
Speeding drivers are “putting the lives of people at risk” after travelling at more than double the limit during lockdown, police say.
Motorists were caught driving at 61mph in a 30mph zone in St Neots and 73mph in a 30mph area in Cambridge in recent weeks.
Cambridgeshire police warned that speeding could result in more accidents – and deaths – if drivers didn’t take more responsibility. In St Neots, 93 speeding tickets were handed out and 25 drivers spoken to during a 48-hour crackdown during the first weekend in September. Taxi drivers, delivery drivers and motorcyclists were among those who were stopped.
PC Josh Ives, from the St Neots Neighbourhood Team, said: “Speeding is one of the contributions to avoidable collisions that result in death or serious injury.
“It’s simple, the faster you drive the less time you have to react and you are putting not only your life at risk but also the lives of others.”
It comes as Department for Transport data said that motor vehicle use in Great Britain had fallen by two thirds during the summer months, particularly since the UK went into lockdown on March 23.
But speeding drivers continued to flout rules by using quieter roads as “racetracks”, police said.
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The RAC said speeding offences in lockdown were “truly shocking”.
RAC road safety spokesman Simon Williams, said: “Some of the speeds police forces have caught drivers doing are truly shocking.
“At such high speeds there is virtually no time to react should anything unexpected happen in front such as a car changing lanes at the last second or a vehicle having to brake suddenly.
“Clearly, some drivers have taken advantage of quieter roads to speed excessively putting the lives of others at risk at the worst possible time, but at the same time it’s encouraging that so many police forces have taken firm action even during the lockdown, which sends a strong message to other would-be offenders.
“The figures for speeding offences on 30mph roads are particularly worrying as far more people have been walking and cycling.”
