Leadfoots on the loose as pandemic clears the roads

The pandemic shutdown may have reined in business, but it has not slowed down motorists on the state’s roads, where police say speeding is up by over a quarter.

Police have warned motorists they will be out in force to catch speedsters over the Anzac Day Weekend.

THE pandemic shutdown may have reined in business but it has not slowed down motorists on the state’s roads.

Despite a 30 per cent drop in traffic, police have recorded a doubling of speeding detected from point-to-point cameras compared with the same time last year.

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Road Policing Command Assistant Commissioner Mike Keating said just as concerning was a 74 per cent increase in speeding detected from cameras mounted in trailers and an 84 per cent rise in speeding detected from cameras at traffic lights.

Overall, he said in the past five weeks, the rate of detection for operating speed cameras increased by an average of 26 per cent.

One of the worst speeds detected was 156km/h in a 100km/h zone on the Ipswich Motorway at Goodna on Wednesday.

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But speeding was not concentrated to the southeast with a motorist clocked doing 147km/h in a 100km//h zone on the Bruce Highway at Maryborough on Thursday.

The Bruce Highway attracted many of the fines with police also issuing a male driver a speeding infringement notice after initial readings of 146km/h in a 100km/h zone on the highway at Bernaraby in the week leading up to Easter.

Other speeding hot spots were at Deception Bay Road at Deception Bay where a motorist was clocked doing 115km/h in a 60km/h zone today and at Ormeau where police stopped a motorist who was allegedly doing 133km/h in 110km/h zone on the M1.

“Despite a 30 per cent reduction of vehicles on Queensland roads, we are seeing a significant increase in the proportion of speeding drivers,” Assistant Commissioner Keating said.

“It is very concerning how often our officers and speed camera systems are detecting exceptionally high speeds.

“The risks of speeding have not changed and the faster you go, the more consequence there is if you hit something or someone else.”

Assistant Commissioner Keating said the sharp increase in speed detections could be associated with a misconception of reduced police activity.

But he told motorists there would be a large police presence on the state’s roads especially over the ANZAC DAY weekend with patrols of all major road networks and with fixed and mobile trailer cameras.