Under the new rules, drivers caught exceeding the speed limit by over 50 kph in built-up areas automatically get their driving licence suspended for three months.

Inspector Marek Konkolewski of Warsaw police headquarters told private broadcaster TVN: “There’s been a drop in road accidents by 3,134, with 392 fewer people killed and 3,960 fewer injured. That’s pleasing.”

Over 34,000 speeders have been stripped of their driving licence for three months over the last year.

Junior inspector Józef Klimczewski, from Poznań police headquarters in western Poland, said: “The change [in rules] has contributed to a change in thinking by drivers.”