Well this is jolly interesting. We linked up with Data News UK and they asked us for a comment on their findings. It was all about speeding and the only conclusion seems to be that it all depends where you live. And drive, as to whether you get any points. Basically move to Scotland and a couple of hip and happening city centres and you can tear around to your heart’s content in theory. In practice there is a bit more to it than that. Anywhere if you are the driver of an Austin 1300GT it seems to be good news.

Ee by gum – Driving offence statistics show that people from Yorkshire are the most likely to have an endorsement on their licence for breaking the speed limit. Residents of “God’s own country” may be portrayed as stubborn, plain-talking and tight with their money – but it would appear they are also the most likely to disregard the speed limits. Drivers from Wetherby, Halifax and Bradford all feature in the top ten of places where drivers are most likely to have speeding points on their licences.

New figures from the Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) show the percentage of people in each of almost 3,000 postcode areas of the UK who have a speeding conviction to their name. At the top of the list is LS23 in Wetherby, where 17.9 percent of drivers have a current speeding endorsement — meaning almost one in six licence holders has been caught over the limit. Nearby LS22, also covering Wetherby, ranks fourth, while HX04 in Halifax and BD11 in Bradford also appear in the national top ten. Motorists in Redditch and Bewdley in Worcestershire, along with Telford in Shropshire and parts of Devon and Dorset, also feature heavily among the highest-conviction hotspots.

By contrast, the safest areas are overwhelmingly concentrated in city centres and remote island communities — where just a tiny fraction of drivers have speeding points recorded against them. In Birmingham city centre only 1.57 percent of drivers hold a speeding endorsement — the lowest rate anywhere in the country — closely followed by multiple postcode districts in the Shetland Islands and Outer Hebrides. Crackdowns by local police forces and the spread of fixed and mobile speed cameras can sharply raise the number of drivers caught in some districts compared with neighbouring areas. Long rural A-roads and fast commuter routes may also inflate totals, because drivers spend more time at higher speeds than those stuck in congested city traffic. Drivers (percentage) with the most speeding convictions on their licences:

  1. LS23 (Wetherby, West Yorkshire) - 17.91
  2. B96 (Redditch, Worcestershire) - 15.59
  3. HX04 (Halifax, West Yorkshire) - 14.81
  4. LS22 (Wetherby, West Yorkshire) - 14.79
  5. BD19 (Swanage, Dorset) - 14.75
  6. TF08 (Telford, Shropshire) - 14.66
  7. BD11(Bradford, West Yorkshire) - 14.39
  8. EX33 (Braunton, Devon) - 14.11
  9. PL03 (Plymouth, Devon) - 14.10
  10. DY12 (Bewdley, Worcestershire) - 14.05

Several of the worst-hit areas sit right alongside some of the country’s busiest fast routes — with Wetherby’s LS23 and LS22 districts next to the A1(M), while Halifax and Bradford hotspots are fed by the A629 and A650 corridors used by thousands of commuters each day.  Other top-ten zones including Redditch and Bewdley lie on or near the A448 and A456, and Telford’s TF08 patch is criss-crossed by high-speed roads linking to the M54. In the South West, Braunton is served by the A361 North Devon Link Road and Plymouth by the A38 Devon Expressway — major arteries where higher speeds and regular camera enforcement can drive up conviction rates. Drivers (percentage) with the least speeding convictions on their licences:

  1. B04 (Birmingham City Centre) - 1.57
  2. ZE02 (Shetland Islands)- 1.58
  3. ZE01 (Shetland Islands) - 1.68
  4. S01 (Sheffield City Centre) - 2.18
  5. KW15 (Kirkwall, Orkney) - 2.21
  6. HS08 (Isle of South Uist) - 2.31
  7. EH08 (Edinburgh, Holyrood Park) – 2.43
  8. HS07 (Isle of Benbecula) - 2.44
  9. G02 (Glasgow City Centre) - 2.46
  10. HS03 (Isle of Harris) - 2.54

Of course the majority of speeders are caught by cameras. Wherever the cameras are, the points will inevitably follow. Rarely are dangerous drivers actually stopped by the traffic cops and their errors pointed out before getting an old fashioned ticket. Now it is simply a distant telling off via the post. Whether or not drivers have points now seems to be purely a matter of location. Those lucky enough not to live in George Orwell’s now factual surveillance society (The Highlands and Islands) can live relatively points free. The interesting thing is the City Centre Almost Zero Points Phenomenon. That’s due to hardly anyone owning cars in those car unfriendly environments where parking on street is impossible or unaffordable. This has to be seen as something of a success for the anti car lobby, even if it means less speeding enforcement revenue.