Group of MPs and peers says drivers should be fined for going just 1mph over the speed limit

Drivers should be fined for going just 1mph over the speed limit, a group of MPs and peers will demand.

In a new report, set to be published tomorrow, the All Parliamentary Group for Cyling and Walking will call for tolerances in the enforcement of speeding to be removed.

Most police foces have a tolerance of 10 per cent plus 2mph above the limit before drivers face prosecution for speeding.

This means that motorists are likely to face action if they go at 24mph in a 20mph limit, or 35mph in a 30mph limit, for example.

But the APPG, made up of cross-party MPs and peers, will call for the tolerances to be removed as one of 10 recommendations in their report.

In a new report, set to be published tomorrow, the All Parliamentary Group for Cyling and Walking will call for tolerances in the enforcement of speeding to be removed

Most police foces have a tolerance of 10 per cent plus 2mph above the limit before drivers face prosecution for speeding

According to the Sunday Times, the report will state: ‘If the working assumption is that one can speed (to an extent) with impunity, this fosters a belief that traffic law does not need to be taken seriously.

‘We hold the view that speed limits and their enforcement represent the foundation of road justice because speeding accounts for the lion’s share of offences committed on the roads.’

The APPG will also call for ministers to consider the introduction of escalating penalties for repeat traffic offences; a requirement for re-testing for anyone wishing to drive following any period of disqualification; and an increase in the maximum sentence for dangerous driving to four years.

Among their recommendations, they also want the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) to guide police forces to bail drivers they arrest for dangerous driving with a condition not to drive.

According to Brake, the road safety charity, a car’s typical stopping distance almost halves to 12 metres from 23 metres when a car is going 20mph, compared to 30mph. 

Edmund King, president of the AA, told the newspaper: ‘Speed limits are there for a reason and people should respect them.

‘But if people are too paranoid about going 1mph or 2mph above the speed limit, that’s not conducive to road safety.

‘It is better to be able to see a cyclist on the left hand side of the road, or a pedestrian stepping out from the right, rather than just to stare at the speedometer.’

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