A map reveals where in the UK speeding drivers drove the fastest on 30mph roads.
Dangerous drivers continue to put lives at risk on the roads after figures reveal speeding at over 90mph in 30mph areas.
The speeding motorists were labelled as ‘reckless’ and ‘selfish.’
Almost half (48%) of UK police forces caught motorists exceeding 90mph in a 30mph zone.
We rounded up the highest speeds recorded across the UK.
Map shows speeding on 30mph roads
The highest speed recorded on a 30mph road was 122mph in the South Yorkshire Police area, the data collected by RAC from 40 forces show.
You can view each area by hovering on the map.
A speed of 113mph was recorded on one 30mph road in the Sussex Police area, followed by speeds of 112mph in Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire.
Out of 45 police forces, 40 responded to RAC’s Freedom of Information request, with data covering between January 2023 and August 2024.
Driving at 60mph in a 30mph zone appeared to be common, with almost all forces (90%) catching people doing so.
One of the most extreme speeding cases in the UK is thought to have been recorded in Northampton, where 42-year-old Shaun Davis was accused of speeding at up to 192mph.
He denied the charges, but Northampton Crown Court found him guilty of speeding between 150mp and 192mph. He was sentenced to 28 months in prison and given a ten year driving ban.
Speeding drivers were also caught in 20mph zones.
One motorist drove at 88mph in North Wales, while another sped at 84mph in the City of London.
The highest speed captured on any road was on the M1 in Leicestershire. One driver was caught speeding at 167mph on the 70mph motorway.
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.
‘There is no place for the vastly excessive speeds that some people are prepared to drive.
‘While some speeds were recorded in the middle of the night when traffic will have been lighter, this isn’t always the case – some of the fastest drivers were clocked at other times of day when they’d have been sharing the roads with many others.’
More than four people die on UK roads every day on average.
Speeding has been found to contribute to a significant number of deadly crashes.
Road deaths in the UK
In 2023, 1,624 people were killed on the roads, while a total of 29,711 were killed or seriously injured.
Speeding was a factor in 58% of road fatalities and in 43% of all kinds of road collisions.
Excessive speed contributed to 888 fatalities in 2023 and to 39,882 crashes of all severities.
There were 132,977 casualties overall in all road incidents in 2023, official figures from the Department for Transport show.
45% of the crashes involved a car occupant.
Jo Shiner, a lead for roads policing at the National Police Chiefs’ Council, said that while some incidents ‘can be a genuine mistake,’ the highest speeds recorded across the UK ‘are clearly drivers taking deliberate decisions to travel at excessive speeds, putting everyone at risk.’
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She continued: ‘Speed limits are set based on many factors including the road layout, what’s in the surrounding area and taking into account where there might be more vulnerable road users. Choosing to drive above those limits is reckless, selfish and completely unacceptable.
‘We all have a responsibility to keep each other safe and do whatever we can to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads each day.’
Jonathan Clarkson, the spokesperson for a road safety partnership at Leicestershire Police, told Metro that the ‘difference between a few miles per hour can be the difference between life and death,’ adding that a speed limit is ‘not a target.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
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