SPEED cameras have captured nine motorists in Scotland exceeding 120mph on motorways and trunk roads in the past year, including the notorious A9 and the A74 Glasgow to Carlisle route.
A breakdown of the 20 worst speeding offences in Scotland during 2014 revealed that one driver hit 129mph on a stretch of the A90 at Waterston Road in Angus, well above the speed limit of 70mph.
It was the worst case of speeding caught on camera last year, according to the data obtained under freedom of information from Police Scotland by motoring organisation, the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM).
The incident was among nine where motorists accelerated to 120mph or more in 70mph zones.
One driver was caught doing 127mph on at A9 Perth to Inverness road, at Moulinearn, in the second most serious speeding offence caught on camera last year. A second motorist was caught driving at 120mph on the same stretch at Moulinearn in the eighth worst speeding offence revealed by the IAM's request.
The road, which has earned a reputation as the deadliest in Scotland over its high number of fatal crashes, is currently undergoing a major overhaul which will see large stretches of single carriageway dualled and in October average speed camera were activated at 27 locations between Dunblane and Inverness.
Opponents argued that the cameras would disrupt traffic flow on the road, but they have been hailed as a success after dramatically cutting speeding rates from around one in three drivers to one in 20.
The cameras detected 298 vehicles exceeding the speed limit during the first three months of operation compared to 2,493 over the same period the previous year.
However, it was the A74 Glasgow-Carlisle road which was responsible for the majority of speeding offences in the top 20.
One motorist was caught on camera driving at 125mph on the southbound carriageway of the Carlisle Road near the Holms Overbridge, in Beattock - the worst of the nine offences caught on camera on the A74 last year.
Sarah Sillars, IAM chief executive officer, said: "A person who finds driving at these speeds acceptable on a public road needs to undergo a complete rethinking of their attitude with a training and rehabilitation programme. We firmly believe this is the best way of tackling what are undoubtedly persistent and repeat speeders.
"We also renew our call for highly visible policing to ensure the threat of getting caught remains in drivers' and riders' minds."
Motorists caught speeding for the first time face a choice between an automatic £100 fine or three points on their licence.
However, if the motorist already has nine points, or they were travelling at a particularly high speed, then the will be prosecuted and face a fines of up to £1,000 or £2,500 on a motorway. They could also be banned from driving.
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