Huge discrepancy in number of drivers caught speeding across country
Number of drivers caught speeding is 167 times higher in some parts of England and Wales than others
A study of Home Office figures has found that the number of drivers caught speeding varies hugely across England and Wales.
Dr Adam Snow, of Liverpool John Moores University found that there were just 1,191 road users caught speeding in Wiltshire, but in neighbouring Avon and Somerset the figure was 199,337 – 167 times higher.
Across the country, the figure of 2,292,536 speeding offences detected in 2017-18 was 4 per cent higher than the 2,213,257 figure for the previous year.
Police in Avon and Somerset detected the most offences, but other forces weren’t far behind. West Yorkshire police detected 174,796 speeding offences in 2017-18 – a 42 per cent raise on the previous year, while the Metropolitan Police detected 139,318, a 58 per cent increase.
Following close behind was Thames Valley Police, with 131,401, and Greater Manchester, with 101,421.
97 per cent of speeding offences were detected by camera, with a further 3 per cent detected by police and radar scanners.
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation that commissioned the research, said: “There will be many varied and obvious reasons to explain some of the differences between forces such as geographical area, road type and traffic volume. But a lot of it will come down to the local policing priorities.
“It is the job of Police and Crime Commissioners, and Chief Constables, to target resources appropriately, recognising the issues of greatest local concern. Changes and variations in the numbers of offences detected will reflect not just driver behaviour but also the extent of enforcement activity in any one year.
“Drivers tempted to flout the law should recognise that any targeted crackdown on speeding to curtail risky behaviour could swiftly be repeated if those reckless attitudes start to re-emerge.”
