Thousands of drivers wrongly fined for speeding since 2021

National Highways apologised for the error and chief executive Nick Harris said a fix for the issue has been identified.

“Safety is our number one priority… All drivers should continue observing the posted speed limits as normal. Anyone who has been impacted will be contacted by the relevant police force,” he said.

National Highways, which runs England’s motorways, blamed an “anomaly” in how variable speed cameras were interacting with signs on some A roads and motorways.

It meant a delay of around 10 seconds between cameras and relevant variable speed signs, meaning some drivers were incorrectly identified as speeding after the limit had changed.

The body said the 2,650 incidents since 2021 represent fewer than two each day, compared with more than 6 million activations of speed cameras on the affected roads over the same period.

It said the anomaly has impacted 10% of England’s motorways and major A roads.