Warning as figures reveal top speeds of drivers getting faster in Police Scotland's Highland capital area command
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A leading Highland road safety campaigner has described the speeds recorded by police on local roads as “shocking”.
The statistics, obtained by through a freedom of information request, show that the fastest speed logged by officers on roads in the Inverness area command has got progressively faster over the past three years.
We asked what were the 10 fastest speeds of other motorists recorded by police in that area in 2019 and 2020 – in addition, we asked for the same information up to mid-November 2021.
In 2019, the top speed was 94mph, in 2020 it was 97mph and in 2021 it was 98mph, with all three offences occurring on the A9 between Inverness and Dalwhinnie.
The figures show that all the offences were committed on the A9 – 29 incidents between Inverness and Dalwhinnie and one other was between the Highland capital and Wick.
And the slowest of the top 10 speeds have also risen during each successive year – the figures show that it was 83mph in 2019, 85mph in 2020 and 89mph last year.
Road safety campaigner and former regional MSP David Stewart said the figures were shocking.
He said: “The excessive speeds quoted are extremely irresponsible and put lives at risk. There is a direct link between excessive speeds and death and serious injuries caused.
“This is a serious safety issue. Too many of the collisions on the A9 are directly attributable to cars and lorries being driven too fast. These figures are confirmation of what everyone driving on the A9 sees every day.”
Mr Stewart said driving conditions are even more difficult on our region’s minor roads which, when combined with poor road conditions, had led to disproportionately high death and injury rates compared to the rest of Scotland.
He said action could be taken to tackle the issue, adding: “The A9 is already highly monitored with static and mobile police controls, as well as speed cameras, which have helped to reduce speeding, but there needs to be more awareness of the dangers.
“More emphasis should be placed on the training and education of new drivers and I have campaigned for many years for the introduction of a graduated driving scheme, as used successfully in countries such as New Zealand and Australia.”
Inspector Donnie Mackinnon said: “Tackling excessive speeding is a priority for both road policing and divisional officers in the Highlands and Islands.
“Excessive or increased speeding increases the chances of collisions and accidents that can be prevented by adhering to the national speed limit.
“We are committed to tackling road safety issues and influencing driver behaviour through enforcement alongside working with our colleagues in the safety camera unit.”
He urged motorists and other road users to take responsibility for their own behaviour and to be aware of the speed limits in the areas they were driving.
“We will continue to take action to improve road safety and ask that anyone who has concerns about speeding to report it to us on 101,” he added.
Revealed: Hotspots outlined in city area
Top 10 fastest speeds recorded in Police Scotland’s Inverness command area have increased since 2019.
• 2019: All on A9 between Inverness and Dalwhinnie – 1. 94mph, 2. 90mph, 3. 87mph, 4-6. 85mph, 7-8. 84mph, 9-10. 83mph
• 2020: All on A9 between Inverness and Dalwhinnie – 1. 97mph, 2. 93mph, 3-4. 91mph, 5-6 87mph, 7-10. 85mph
• 2021: All on A9 between Inverness and Dalwhinnie, apart from nine, which is on A9 between Inverness and Wick – 1. 98mph, 2-3 93mph, 4. 91mph, 5-8. 90mph, 9-10. 89mph
• More information on road safety can be found at the Police Scotland website.
