Drug driving and speeding have reached a record highs.

Research of the Ministry of Justice data, undertaken by the AA, shows that drivers returned to the roads in 2021 after the pandemic with greater disregard of rules and regulations.

Following a year of lockdowns and travel restrictions, the number of drug driving cases increased by 54% to 21,411.

Drink and drugs

The figures show that 206 drug and drink driving offences are committed every day in England and Wales.

There has  been a 13% spike in drink-driving cases in the past year, with 33,742 motorists hauled before the courts in 2021.

What’s more, there was also been a 7% rise in fatalities last year, with 1,558 people killed in collisions.

The data also showed that, while 32,500 drivers were taken to court for drink-driving, only 6,169 appeared in the dock for mobile phone use behind the wheel. This is despite anecdotal evidence from survey revealing this has become a common offence, and one research has revealed is as dangerous as drink driving.

Too much, too many

Jack Cousens, head of roads policy at the AA, said: “We are worried that the standard of driving has fallen considerably since the pandemic.

“Too many offences have now reached record highs.

“If we want to achieve the ambition of zero road deaths we need to level up the standard of driving across the country. With record highs of dangerous driving, drug driving and speeding, it is a timely reminder to every driver that being behind the wheel is a serious responsibility and that poor driving can have serious consequences.

“Drug driving has increased year on year since records began and while more police forces are carrying out roadside tests, it seems some people are willing to try to chance it.”

Illegal highs

Whilst the drug driving figures seem alarming, it is important to keep in mind that drug driving is a relatively new offence. Police forces testing for drug driving at the roadside has become easier which means the increases are from a very low statistical level. Despite this, the statistics show a worrying level of disregard.

Chief Constable Jo Shiner, lead on roads for the National Police Chiefs’ Council, says: “Since the introduction of roadside screening devices for drug driving in 2015 we have seen an increase in prosecutions for this offence. .

“Our policing goal remains to save lives and prevent harm by continuing to improve our national information, intelligence and professional knowledge around drink and drug driving and dangerous driving.”

Unfortunately, the number of active traffic police on the roads has reduced significantly over the last decade. This has hampered catching illegal drivers, but also diluted the deterrent effects  – drivers do not believe they will be caught.

Dangerous

Dangerous driving convictions have also leapt to the highest level since 2011, with 5,951 last year.

There has been a 9% rise in death by dangerous driving offences since 2020. Careless driving prosecutions went up by 78%.

Convictions for causing serious injury by dangerous driving have also rocketed from 45 in 2013 to a record 604 last year.

Full speed

Speeding convictions in England and Wales have increased by 75% over the past decade from 116,595 in 2011 to 203,545 last year.

There has also been an 84% rise in motorists failing to supply information to police when required over the past decade. In total, 732,363 motoring cases resulted in fines or sentences last year, a rise of almost a quarter on 2020.

A total of 638,044 motoring cases were taken to court last year with 565,440 people found guilty. It  shows that 85.5% of motoring related court cases end with a conviction.