The number of speeding drivers caught out in the Thames Valley is among the highest in the country, figures reveal.

In 2017/18 a total of 131,401 motorists were caught flouting speeding laws across the Thames Valley - the fourth highest figure for police forces across the country.

Avon and Somerset Police came first– with 199,337 speeding crimes detected in 2017/8, followed by West Yorkshire, with 174,796 and Metropolitan Police, with 139,318.

In the Thames Valley the majority of speeding drivers, 55 per cent, were ordered to attend a speed awareness course, while 36 per cent were slapped with a fine.

A total of 3,817 speeding drivers, or 3 per cent, in the region ended up in court, according to Home Office figures.

The figures for the Thames Valley are more than 100 times higher than other areas of the country – as Wiltshire police caught the lowest number of speeding drivers – 1,191.

The second lowest was Durham, with 8,802 drivers caught out, followed by Derbyshire, with 10,480, Cleveland, with 11,308 and Kent, with 18,878.

The RAC Foundation – which analysed the data – said a lot of the major variances between the speeding data “will come down to local police priorities”, as well as road type and traffic volume.

Director of the RAC Foundation, Steve Gooding, said: “There will be many varied and obvious reasons to explain some of the differences between forces such as geographical area, road type and traffic volume.

“But a lot of it will come down to the local policing priorities.

“It is the job of Police and Crime Commissioners, and Chief Constables, to target resources appropriately, recognising the issues of greatest local concern.

“Changes and variations in the numbers of offences detected will reflect not just driver behaviour but also the extent of enforcement activity in any one year.

“Drivers tempted to flout the law should recognise that any targeted crackdown on speeding to curtail risky behaviour could swiftly be repeated if those reckless attitudes start to re-emerge.”