Speeding Recidivism and Road Safety

Data from a pilot study of speeding recidivism are presented. This study forms part of a larger program of research on speeding recidivism in Queensland. The research team obtained four and a half years of traffic records for a sample of 200 Queensland drivers caught speeding by speed camera on an index day in 1999. Data were collected on their index, subsequent and previous speed and other traffic offences, on demographic details and on their criminal histories. Just under one fifth of the speed offenders (18.0%) were aged between 18 and 24 years; the remainder were aged over 25 years. Almost two thirds of offenders (63.5%) were male. The speeding recidivism rate was calculated at 69.0% for one or more re-offences and 43.5% for two or more re-offences. The mean number of re-offences was 1.63, with a maximum of 8. Males were more likely to re-offend after the index offence, with 74.0% committing at least one re-offence, compared with 60.3% of females.