A CAMERA which can detect the speed of vehicles from up to 1,000 metres away has caught 4,742 speeding drivers in three months.

North Yorkshire Police say following the launch of the six-month mobile camera safety pilot scheme in July, the number of offences captured in the high-speed range have fallen from two per cent of all violations to 0.7 per cent.

Officers running the force’s camera enforcement system van have also seen the number of offences in mid-speed range fallen from 21.1 per cent of all violations to 10.6 per cent.

Among the roads with the highest number of speeding offences has been Leeming Lane, Catterick, with 189 drivers stopped.

The camera’s technology captures 360 degree images of the location and is effective at detecting motorcycles and producing high-quality images of vehicles and the riders or drivers.

The camera can also detect mobile phone and seatbelt offences.

Of the 4,742 drivers caught speeding, 3,897 have been offered speed awareness courses, 775 have been issued with conditional fixed penalty notices and 70 motorists have been summonsed to court.

Inspector Dave Brown, head of strategic roads policing at North Yorkshire Police, he said: “At this stage it’s too early to say what impact the pilot is having on casualty reduction or overall driver behaviour and more detailed analysis will be carried out towards the end of the pilot.”