Police will be out in force over the Bank Holiday in their continuing effort to keep death and destruction off North Yorkshire's roads.

They will be operating extra patrols and speed checks, round-the-clock, as part of Operation Halter - the hard-line policy they launched in 2003 in the face of rising motorcycle casualties.

The tough approach to speeding and anti-social behaviour by riders was vindicated last year when fatalities were dramatically slashed.

And a key factor is the "fast-tracking" programme whereby extreme speeders - those smashing limits by more than 30mph - are put before courts very quickly.

So far this year there have been 410 death or serious injury accidents involving cars or motorcycles, a reduction of 7.6 per cent on the same period last year.

This year to date there have been 94 motorcycle crashes in which someone was killed or seriously injured, a reduction from last year's 105 at 25 August, although the number of deaths is the same - 11.

"Last year was better than the year before, and this year is better than last year - but no-one is celebrating," said Assistant Chief Constable David Collins yesterday.

"When you consider the tens of thousands of riders based here or who come to North Yorkshire to enjoy our 6,000 miles of roads, then 94 bad bike accidents is a very tiny total.

"But it is still 94 too many. Each represents suffering and pain or different types, and each represents a tragedy with ramifications well beyond the individual rider or pillion."

So far this year officers have devoted 2,285 hours exclusively to Operation Halter, compared with 1,441 hours by this time last year. During Operation Halter this year - 478 speeders have been caught, compared with 159 in 2004; 194 extreme speeders have been or are being fast-tracked to court. A third of them are motorcyclists.

Sixty-nine fast-trackers have already been convicted and almost 30 per cent of them - riders and drivers - have been disqualified quickly.

Seventy-four riders have been caught crossing double white lines, compared to 19 this time last year.