A police force has become the first to use drones to record motorists' poor driving. Devon & Cornwall Police's drone unit has linked up with its roads policing team in order to track dangerous drivers.
It says it is the first time the machines have been used for road safety. The force says the flying devices can track vehicles' speeds live using fixed positions on dangerous stretches of road.
They can also video all road incidents - meaning any dangerous or inappropriate driving will be caught on camera. Officers will then be able to check the MOT, tax and insurance status of any vehicle - quickly allowing stolen bikes and dangerous drivers to be tracked down or even arrested on the spot.
The move comes as part of National Motorcycle Safety Week (April 3-9). Chief Inspector Ben Asprey, Head of Roads Policing at Devon & Cornwall Police, said: "Sadly last year was a terrible year for serious and fatal collisions involving motorcyclists.
"In 2022, 16 motorcyclists were killed on Devon and Cornwall’s roads – the highest figure in the past five years. A further 187 were also left seriously injured.
“Despite motorcyclists making up less than 1% of overall traffic, they account for roughly a third of all serious and fatal collisions in our area. But it’s important to remember that these aren’t just numbers, these are people’s loved ones – parents, sons, daughters, friends and partners – and we are determined to drive those numbers down.
“Speed and inappropriate riding have been major contributory factors in the motorcycle collisions we have attended. Travelling too fast gives you less time to react and dramatically increases their risk of being fatally or seriously injured.
"Many of these serious collisions have not involved any other road users, meaning inappropriate riding and motorcyclist error is also a major factor. Motorcyclists are already a vulnerable road user group, not least because they have considerably less protection than drivers of cars or other vehicles.
"Preventing any further unnecessary loss of life is our top priority.”
The force are running the project in partnership with 'Vision Zero South West' - a collaborative project between government agencies trying to cut the number of road deaths and injuries in to zero. Their new fleet of drones for the project are able to operate in changing weather conditions, as well as varying temperatures.
Inspector Colin Harper of Devon & Cornwall Police’s Drone team added: "This innovative use of drones will give us early warning of any offences and allow us to be far more targeted in our approach on the ground.
“We will be deploying this technology on roads where we know motorbikes are travelling too fast, and also around dates and locations where motorcycle events are scheduled to take place.
“This technology can and will be used to help detect speeding and dangerous driving in all vehicles on our roads.
"At present, our focus is on motorcyclists who are at highest-risk according to our data, particularly at this time of year when more riders will be venturing out again after the winter.”
