HAMPSHIRE police are cracking down on speeding this week as part of a European road safety campaign.

The force will highlight how hundreds of deaths and life-changing injuries could be prevented if drivers cut their speed by just 1kmph.

Road policing officers from the Joint Operations Unit are reinforcing limits across Hampshire to mark the latest Tispol (European Traffic Police Network) campaign.

Officers say an average reduction of 1kmph could prevent around 1,300 road deaths per year, with 800 on rural roads, 400 on urban roads and around 80 on motorways.

Speed was a factor in 3,064 fatal or serious crashes in 2013, with sixty per cent happening on rural roads.

Young men are most at risk.

Road safety Sergeant Rob Heard said: “Excessive or inappropriate speed has a singularly devastating impact on the safety of road users, increasing both the risk of a crash and the severity of the consequences.

“People need to realise it’s a speed limit and not a target so it may be more appropriate to travel at a lower speed depending on the road conditions for their own safety.

“A few miles an hour can make a significant difference to you reacting and being able to avoid a hazard or collision. The risk of death is approximately four times higher when a pedestrian is hit at 40mph than at 30mph, so please drive appropriately, it’s not worth the risk.”