Five cars a day caught speeding over 100mph

MORE than five motorists a day were caught driving at over 100mph by police forces last year.

The fastest recorded speed was 156mph, more than double the speed limit, which was reached by footballer Jordan Slew, 23, in a BMW M4 Coupe on the A1(M) in Cambridgeshire last March.

The Chesterfield striker was fined £1,400 and given a sixmonth ban.

At least 2,169 traffic reports were filed by UK police forces against drivers travelling faster than 100mph.

Figures showed 152 of the motorists were clocked going at 120mph or faster, while at least 43 were driving at speeds of 130mph or more.

After Slew’s BMW, the highest speeds were driven in a Mercedes C200, which reached 155mph on the M1 in Hertfordshire, and a Jaguar travelling at 144mph on the M4 in Gloucestershire. Gerard McManus, whose daughter Rebecca was killed standing at a bus stop in 2014 by a driver who was doing 101mph in a 40mph zone, said: ‘If you buy a performance car that’s capable of 0-60 in four seconds and a top speed of 200mph, it’s likely at some point the person is likely to take it to its limits.’

Of the 42 of the UK’s 45 police forces who provided figures, Cambridgeshire Police caught 284 drivers going over 100mph, followed by Humberside Police, at 166, and Avon and Somerset Police at 164.

Of the drivers travelling more than 130mph whose vehicle was specified, a quarter were BMW cars or motorcycles. Audi, Mercedes and Ford cars made up 13 of the group.

Chief Constable Suzette Davenport, the National Police Chiefs Council’s lead for Roads Policing, told the BBC: ‘Speed is a significant factor in fatal road accidents and extreme speed causes an even greater risk.’

The figures came from 42 of 45 UK police forces who responded to a Freedom of Information request submitted by BBC Radio 5 Live.