Mansfield man's £750 court bill for speeding
A Mansfield man was landed with a hefty court bill after he was found guilty of speeding.
Amjad Akbani was returning from London on the M1 when he entered temporary restrictions of 50mph between junctions 27 and 27, just before midnight on April 29, last year, and he was clocked at 58mph.
Mr Akbani, 44, of Clumber Drive, denied speeding when he appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court, on Wednesday.
He told the court: “There was no traffic. It shouldn’t have been down from 70mph to 50mph. There was no reason for the speed limit to come down.”
But senior traffic officer Christopher Foster said message boards indicated there had been an incident further ahead, and the limit had been in place for 23 minutes before Mr Akbani arrived.
He was found guilty after a trial and ordered to pay £620 costs, as well as a £100 fine, and a government surcharge of £30.
Three points were added to his licence.
District judge Jonathan Taaffe told him: “the smart motorway system is there for a reason. Many drivers make the same mistake you made.
“That 50mph speed limits don’t apply to them because they don’t see traffic incidents ahead.”
He said Mr Akbani had made a “genuine mistake”, and “the matter should never have reached trial.”