More than half of speeding drivers now go on £95 courses

Safer Roads Humber made £2.16m sending 19,200 people on £95 speed awareness courses – 5,500 more than the previous year – after the Government increased the cut-off at which drivers can be sent on courses.

Drivers locally can now be 12 miles over the speed limit (up to 42mph in a 30mph zone) on a sliding scale up to 16 miles (up to 86mph in a 70mph zone), and be offered a course, avoiding points and a fine.

More than half of drivers caught on camera in East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire now go on speed awareness courses.

The partnership is relying more on income from the courses and asking councils for smaller contributions.

Its annual report revealed that cash-strapped Hull Council withdrew its £200,000 funding, leading to mobile enforcement stopping at 17 sites in April 2011, apart from the A63 Daltry Street flyover and the A63 Castle Street.

The statistics show that the number of killed and seriously injured on Hull’s roads more than doubled in the past year.

Safer Roads Humber says that the city’s accidebnt figures show a “strange” up and down pattern and it is too early to say whether the increase is a sign of a longer term trend.

Spokeswoman Ruth Gore said the safety partnership and local authority agreed not to publicise the withdrawal of the cameras, because of the impact of an announcement.

She added: “We know that when we publicly announce that a camera site has gone offline the speed goes up and the casualties go up.”

Paul Watters, from the AA, said that 74 per cent of motorists polled were in favour of the cameras.

He added: “We take the view that a speed awareness course is better than three points on the licence and a £60 fine.”