Thought this may be of interest
040 (TR-007) 5 April 2007
Vehicle Speeds in Great Britain: 2006
The Department for Transport today published National Statistics of vehicle speeds in Great Britain in 2006. These statistics relate to the speeds at which drivers travel in free-flow conditions across the road network.
The level of cars exceeding the speed limit varies considerably between road types. The highest level of cars travelling over the speed limit occurred on motorways (54 per cent). This compares to 56 per cent in 2005. The lowest level was on single carriageway roads, with a speed limit of 60 mph, where 11 per cent of cars were driven over the speed limit.
In 2006 nearly half (49 per cent) of all car drivers on 30 mph built-up roads exceeded the speed limit compared with 65 per cent in 2001 and 72 per cent ten years earlier in 1996. On 40 mph built-up roads, 28 per cent of car drivers exceeded the speed limit, this is an increase of 4 per cent on the 2005 level.
The percentage of motorcyclists who exceeded the speed limit was similar to that of car drivers. However, the percentage of motorcycles travelling at more than 10mph above the speed limit on all road types was higher. Twenty five per cent of motorcyclists travelled at 80 mph or more on motorways compared with 17 per cent of car drivers. This compared with 27 per cent and 19 per cent respectively in 2005.
On major, non-built-up single carriageway roads, 76 per cent of articulated heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) exceeded their 40 mph limit (28 per cent by more than 10 mph). The average speed recorded for articulated HGVs on these roads was 46 mph, just 2 mph less than the average speed of cars (48 mph), for which the limit on these roads is 60 mph.
The survey also reveals a high incidence of speeding by HGVs on 30 mph roads: 44 per cent of 2-axle HGVs exceeded the speed limit, 15 per cent by more than 5 mph. This compares with 46 per cent and 18 per cent respectively in 2005.
The statistics are available at: http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/da ... espeedsgb/
NOTES TO EDITORS
1. Published on 5 April 2007. Further figures and details will be published in Road Statistics 2006: Traffic, Speeds and Congestion in July 2007.
2. Data for this survey are collated from 36 sites where a 30 or 40 mph limit applies and at 60 other sites. The sites have been selected so that speeds are not seriously constrained by road layout, traffic congestion or by the proximity of speed cameras. The speeds are recorded as vehicles pass over an automatic counter and do not represent speeds over a longer distance. They do however provide an indication of compliance with speed limits.
3. Outside built-up areas, the normal speed limits currently in force are as follows :-
Motorway Dual C/way Single C/way
Cars and Motorcycles 70 70 60
Buses and Coaches 70 60 50
HGVs(>7.5 tonnes) 60 50 40
4. None of the survey sites in built-up areas were subject to a speed limit lower than 30 mph.
For more information contact the Department for Transport
Public Enquiries: 0207 7944 8300
Department for Transport Website: http://www.dft.gov.uk
