Peterborough motorcyclist caught at one of highest speeds ever recorded in Cambridgeshire

Officers were carrying out speed checks along the A47 at Thorney on Sunday August 14 at about 5.20pm when they clocked a man on a BMW RR100 motorbike travelling at 160mph, more than twice the speed limit.

PC Dave Black from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Roads Policing Unit said: “The motorcyclist was travelling horrendously fast. There is absolutely no reason for anyone to be travelling at such speeds on public roads. Not only was he putting himself at danger, but also the lives of other road users.”

The 56-year-old man from Peterborough has been reported to court.

The minimum penalty for speeding is a £100 fine and three penalty points added to your license however drivers across the county are warned that the speed limit is a limit not a target. In some road conditions or road layouts even driving at the speed limit could be too fast.

Traffic Sergeant Ian Manley said: “Those who speed put not only their own lives at risk but also the lives of others.

“In the last five years (2011-2015) there have been 172 fatal or serious collisions in Cambridgeshire where at least one driver was reported to be exceeding the speed limit or driving too fast for the conditions, resulting in 25 fatalities and 191 people being seriously injured.

“The faster you drive the less time you have to react. Speed remains one of the biggest factors in fatal collisions.

“The difference of a few miles per hour can mean the difference between life and death. The faster someone is driving, the less time they have to stop if something unexpected happens.

“There will be times when you need to drive under the speed limit in order to drive correctly for the conditions or layout of the road.

“I would urge anyone who drives to help us protect road users by reducing your speed and driving to the conditions of the roads.

“If you kill someone while speeding, you will have to live with the long-term emotional consequences. Remember that speed limits are there for a reason.”