Ref. 31118-64THIS is the latest weapon in the fight against speeding drivers. The £30,000 Honda Deau-veille is packed with the latest laser technology.

It will be used by police to catch drivers who turn rural roads around Swindon into potential death-traps.

Police already have six speed camera vans, but these cannot always be used safely in outlying villages.

Country lanes, however, can be just as lethal as faster roads.

The 650cc bike one of the first in the country to be funded by fines from drivers is equipped with a laser gun and video recorder.

It will be used in areas with a history of collisions, such as around Purton and Brink-worth.

Sgt Nick Blencowe, of the Wiltshire and Swindon Safety Camera Partnership, said: "Sometimes it is difficult to park the mobile vans safely.

"We will not be measuring the speed of every driver, just those we believe are speeding."

Swindon currently has five fixed speed cameras, while mobile vans are used at 20 locations in an area including Cricklade, Wootton Bassett and Wroughton.

Although controversial, police say the measures are needed to cut accidents.

The Government wants to see a 40 per cent cut in collisions in Wiltshire by 2010.

Sgt Blencowe said that criticism of moves to catch speeders was unfair. He added: "A recent Government report found that accidents in Swindon had fallen by 64 per cent at cameras sites, which is better than the national average of 40 per cent.

"I totally reject the criticism that cameras are just about raising money.

"They are about saving lives, and in fact surveys show that 80 per cent of people support them."

David Frampton, who manages Swindon's Safety Camera Partnership, added: "More than a third of all accidents are speed related."

He said that reducing casualty rates would also have a knock-on effect on the NHS which was why the bike was unveiled at the Great Western Hospital.

But Mark McArthur-Christie, Wiltshire spokes-man for the Association of British Drivers, is bitterly opposed to measures such as mobile cameras.

"The figures which show that cameras have reduced accident are simply wrong," he said.

"Accidents happen all over the road network, not just at particular spots.

"Just because figures show local improvements doesn't mean they are working." He wants police to concentrate on catching dangerous drivers, such as motorists who drive while drunk or are under the influence of drugs.

Tamash Lal