Three speeding drivers are being snared every hour by police across Durham and Cleveland, according to figures.
Officers saw 60,358 speed detections across the two Force areas between January 2018 and December 2019 and they saw speed is a "major factor" in fatal and serious collisions.
As part of an upcoming national campaign, senior roads policing officers are warning of the dangers of excess speed in the hope that drivers stop putting lives in danger by taking more care and responsibility.
Inspector Darren Breslin , from Cleveland and Durham Specialist Operations Unit, said: “Speeding is one of the four main causes of fatal and serious collisions, and we have seen a high number of collisions recently where people have been tragically killed or seriously injured.
“Time and time again we issue warnings about the dangers of speeding, however, as our figures show there are still thousands of speeding offences being detected across Cleveland and Durham.
“In 2019 there were 416 collisions resulting in fatalities or serious injuries across Cleveland and Durham. I’m sure that if these collisions involved a loved one of a speeding driver, they would think twice about their speed.
“Lives are being put on the line every single day and we need people to take more care and stick to speeds within the limit which are suitable for the driving conditions. Higher speeds mean that drivers have less time to react to what is happening around them, and it takes longer for the vehicle to stop.
“Our campaigns are primarily about education; raising awareness by highlighting the risks of speeding and encouraging people to obey the limits and to drive at safe speeds for the road environment.
"We will continue to carry out these national campaigns to try to keep people as safe as we possibly can on our roads.”
