Drivers caught on fogbound Beaulieu roads by police as part of Operation Mountie
Drivers were caught speeding through the New Forest this morning (Friday) despite visibility in thick fog described by police as “so bad”.
The latest Operation Mountie session saw officers stationed at the Beaulieu car parks Yew Tree Heath, off Beaulieu Road, and the nearby Pig Bush, off the B3056 Hatchet Lane.
A Met Office yellow warning for fog was in place during this time.
One of those stopped for going “well over” the 40mph limit was given advice by representatives from Forestry England, New Forest National Park Authority and campaign group New Forest Roads Awareness.
But tickets were issued to the other two, whose speeds were clocked at 51 and 52mph.
Posting online afterwards, a local officer said: “Please, please, please stick to the speed limit across the Forest, especially when visibility is so bad – this morning it was down to approximately 100 metres in places.”
One member of the public commented: “Excellent work, begs the question what speeds they’d be doing if they could actually see!”
The officers praised the “vast majority” of motorists who drove past them at “well below” the speed limit.
In place from 4am to 9am, the Met Office alert for south-west England said some dense patches could reduce visibility to less than 100 metres at times, impacting on morning rush-hour travel.
Operation Mountie is a multi-agency initiative to combat speeding and raise awareness of animal safety on New Forest roads.