Waikato driver clocked at 169km/h

A 19-year-old man has had his licence suspended after being caught driving on a rural Waikato highway at speeds more suitable for an airport runway, police say.

The man, who held a restricted licence, was clocked at 169km/h while travelling south of Hamilton on State Highway 3, shortly after 6am yesterday.

Waikato road policing manager Inspector Leo Tooman said the officer who recorded the speed had difficulty believing the radar at first.

"The initial radar reading of the oncoming Mazda Familia was 167km/h but it didn't stop there, the device locked on the southbound car at a speed of 169km/h, a speed more suited to the nearby Hamilton airport runway and not a dark rural highway."

When stopped, the man told the officers he was in a hurry because he was late for work.

Mr Tooman said the man was speeding past numerous farm driveways.

"If someone was to come out of a driveway there wouldn't be a chance to say good night nurse, it would be all over," he said.

"Frankly, I'm surprised a 1994 model Familia is capable of that speed and why someone would believe that on a restricted licence he would have sufficient driving experience to control a vehicle at that speed on a race track let alone a public road."

The man had his licence suspended for 28 days and was due to appear in Hamilton District Court on August 12 on a charge of driving at a dangerous speed.

- NZPA