Skip to main content

Promising results from latest German speed enforcement marathon

During the sixth German speed control operation North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony, police found that motorists generally obeyed speed limits. Around 3,500 police officers and 300 employees of local authorities measured the speeds of vehicles over a period of 24 hours at 2,610 locations. Despite publication of the speed check points and the extensive coverage in the media across the country, 21,600 of the approximately 788,000, or 2.7 per cent, of car drivers checked were driving too fast. On a nor
May 21, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
During the sixth German speed control operation North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony, police found that motorists generally obeyed speed limits.

Around 3,500 police officers and 300 employees of local authorities measured the speeds of vehicles over a period of 24 hours at 2,610 locations. Despite publication of the speed check points and the extensive coverage in the media across the country, 21,600 of the approximately 788,000, or 2.7 per cent, of car drivers checked were driving too fast. On a normal day, around eight per cent of drivers are speeding.

Some glaring violations emerged, including two 18-year-old friends who ran a race during the night, driving through the 60 km/h speed check at 82 and 92 km/h. Cologne police also detected a driver at 141km/h in a speed limit of 70 km/h. On the A57 road near Krefel, where maximum speed of 100 km/h exists, a vehicle was measured at 200 km/h.

The initiative is part of the overall strategy of the police to improve road safety. In 2013, the police found more than two million drivers speeding.

After the large-scale speed control actions in North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony, Interior Minister Ralf Jäger said: “Motorists have taken the ‘I have respect for life’ motto to heart and are driving responsibly. That is our goal. We are adhering to our strategy of more speed checks and more transparency.”

Related Content

  • Dublin Tunnel gets average speed enforcement
    June 13, 2016
    Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) is working with the4 Irish police force, An Garda Síochána, on the installation of Ireland’s first average speed camera enforcement system, which will be deployed in the Dublin Port Tunnel. Opened in 2006, the 4.5 km tunnel forms part of the M50 C-Ring road around Dublin City. Traffic levels through the tunnel have increased by 40 per cent over the last five years and as a result there is statistically, an increase in the potential for collisions and accidents.
  • Urgent action needed as drink-drive figures stall, says Brake
    August 5, 2016
    UK road safety charity Brake is calling on the government to take urgent action after figures released by the Department for Transport (DfT) show little change in the number of people killed because of drink-driving. Government figures reveal that the number of deaths involving a driver under the influence of alcohol was 240 in 2014. That figure has been consistently been reported since 2010 and looks set to continue if the provisional estimate for the 2015 figures proves to be accurate (200-290 killed).
  • How British drivers compare in European responsible driving survey
    April 2, 2015
    With 16 million UK motorists set to take to the roads this Easter weekend, a new European survey finds that risky driving habits and failure to respect the rules are on the increase. The annual survey carried out for Vinci Autoroutes Foundation for Responsible Driving by IPSOS examined the behaviour of drivers from ten European countries. Each year, this survey draws up an inventory of driving practices and trends, allowing closer targeting of methods to prevent irresponsible driving and promote safer ro
  • Fewer cars - more reckless drivers, says GHSA
    April 22, 2020
    Emptier streets may be a green light for some US drivers to flaunt the law, according to police reports.