Police reveal fastest driver caught during lockdown was on M62 - doing 151mph

A car was clocked going 151mph on the M62 in West Yorkshire - which was 81mph over the speed limit. There was also a driver caught doing 130mph in Humberside, while South Yorkshire Police caught someone driving ats 88mph in a 60mph zone. North Yorkshire Police did not provide any data when asked by the RAC.

The second fastest speed was recorded by Suffolk Police - who caught someone doing 140mph on the A14.

Two-thirds of Britain’s police forces caught people driving in excess of 100mph during the first three weeks of the coronavirus lockdown, the RAC's investigation has found.

The other five forces which detected motorists driving at more than 130mph were Northamptonshire, Gwent, Staffordshire, the Metropolitan Police and Kent.

RAC road safety spokesman Simon Williams described the speeds as “truly shocking” and warned that motorists travelling this fast have “virtually no time to react should anything unexpected happen”.

He said: “Some drivers have taken advantage of quieter roads to speed excessively, putting the lives of others at risk at the worst possible 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.”

Department for Transport figures show that road traffic was around two-thirds lower than normal for the first few weeks after the lockdown was introduced on March 23, when people were urged to stay at home and avoid non-essential travel.

The RAC sent freedom of information requests to all forces in Britain. Twenty out of the 30 forces to provide data recorded speeds in excess of 100mph.

Across Britain there were 17,363 speeding offences recorded on roads with 30mph limits.

Mr Williams added: “The figures for speeding offences on 30mph roads are particularly worrying as far more people have been walking and cycling due to the lockdown.

“As some schools and nurseries in England begin to open their doors from this week, there will be even more pedestrians on the roads, so we urge every driver to obey the speed limit and keep all road users safe.”

– Here are the highest speeds by drivers breaking the limit between March 23 and April 13, recorded by police forces that provided data to the RAC (speed limit in brackets):

1. West Yorkshire Police: 151mph (70mph)

2. Suffolk Constabulary: 140mph (70mph)

3. Northamptonshire Police: 138mph (70mph)

4. Gwent Police: 136mph (70mph)

5. Staffordshire Police: 135mph (70mph)

6. Metropolitan Police: 134mph (40mph)

7. Kent Police: 132mph (70mph)

8. Humberside Police: 130mph (70mph)

9. Police Scotland: 128mph (70mph)

10. Lancashire Constabulary: 120mph (70mph)

11. Merseyside Police: 115mph (70mph)

12. North Wales Police: 111mph (70mph)

13. Norfolk Constabulary: 110mph (70mph)

14. Derbyshire Constabulary: 108mph (40mph)

14. South Wales Police: 108mph (50mph)

14. West Midlands Police: 108mph (70mph)

17. Gloucestershire Constabulary: 106mph (70mph)

18. Bedfordshire Constabulary: 104mph (40mph)

19. Devon & Cornwall Police: 101mph (70mph)

19. Hampshire Constabulary: 101mph (70mph)

21. Cheshire Constabulary: 95mph (70mph)