Drivers hit 200km/h on highway

Dunedin police are appealing for public help to target speedsters on the city's Southern Motorway, after drivers have been nabbed travelling at more than 200km/h.

"If we find there's a car we're getting multiple calls about, we can go and target the offenders," Southern Highway Patrol head Senior Sergeant Andrew Burns said yesterday.

He was speaking a day after a 16-year-old youth was arrested for travelling at 209km/h on the motorway.

The teenager, who had a 16-year-old female passenger, was driving his parents' car, a late-model BMW with a V8 engine, on roads slick with light rain.

"It's just patently dangerous ... it's mind-boggling a 16-year-old driving a car like that," Mr Burns said.

The youth was charged with driving at a dangerous speed, which has a maximum penalty of three months' prison, a $4500 fine and a mandatory disqualification for six months.

He was referred to Youth Aid as a starting point, but the penalty he could face was "very similar" to that an adult would, said Mr Burns.

Police are unable to impound vehicles for excessive speed.

A few months ago, two cars were spotted racing on the motorway at an "absolutely insane" 230km/h in peak traffic.

The vehicles were identified as belonging to a Christchurch company, but it had not supplied details of the drivers, and was being charged for not supplying details, which carried a maximum fine of $10,000, Mr Burns said.

"That's two travelling over 200km/h that we've found in two months, so there will be others we haven't had people there for.

"We're going to be more creative in how we police that area, and we have one or two options up our sleeves," he said.

"The biggest problem is we can't be there 24-7; we can't task people to look after a 3km or 5km stretch of highway and nowhere else.

"The thing that concerns us is at those sort of speeds, if something goes wrong your chances of survival are negligible."

- OTAGO DAILY TIMES