116mph speedster fined £600 and banned

A 24-YEAR-old man drove a car at 116mph just off the Tay Road Bridge because he was wanting to get home for his birthday night out.

Andrew Smith, of Taeping Close, Cellardyke, Fife, had been in Dundee buying an outfit shortly before he clocked up the high speed.

Dundee Sheriff Court heard that Smith “was not in any particular rush to get home but was keen to get back to ensure things were in place”.

Fiscal depute Nicola Gillespie told the court the incident took place on October 28 last year — the Saturday before Smith’s birthday. Police with speed guns were positioned on the A92 between the Tay Road Bridge exit and Forgan roundabout, the first roundabout on that stretch.

The fiscal said: “At 11.10am, the accused was driving a Volkswagen Polo heading south on the A92 when he passed officers with handheld speed guns.

“The speed was recorded but he wasn’t stopped at the time. Notification was later sent to his home address.”

An agent on behalf of the accused told the court Smith already had 10 penalty points on his licence for being drunk in charge of a vehicle.

He said: “Mr Smith had attended in Dundee to purchase an outfit for his birthday night out in Edinburgh that evening. He was making his way home. He was not in any particular rush to get home but was keen to get back to ensure things were in place.

“He was clearly aware he was breaking the speed limit but the level of speed came as a shock to him.”

Smith admitted driving a car at 116mph in a 70mph zone.

Sheriff Alastair Carmichael said: “You can’t carry on driving like this. It’s dangerous in the sense that you are putting yourself and other people in danger.”

Smith was disqualified from driving for three months and fined £600.