Motorists increased their speeds on Essex's main routes last year as coronavirus lockdown restrictions sparked a drop in traffic levels, figures reveal.

Department for Transport data shows cars and light vans travelled at an average speed of 33.3 mph on 'A' roads in Essex last year.

That was up from 31 mph in 2019 – a rise of 7 per cent.

The A1019 saw the biggest rise in speeds, up 32 per cent to 21.5 mph, followed by the A1099, up 23 per cent to 15.5mph.

On the main strategic network there was also an increase in speeds, although this was less than on local roads. 

The M11 southbound between J5 and J4 saw a 15.6 per cent increase, with speeds now at 48.8mph. 

M11 southbound between J5 and J4 was next with a 14.5 per cent increase at 43.5mph while the M25 anti-clockwise within J30 had a 12.7 per cent increase with an average speed of 52.4mph.

The slowest average speed was on the A120 eastbound between A131 (north) and B1024 where drivers only managed 42.1mph. 

This was a 3.7 per cent increase on 2019. 

Drivers travelling on the next stretch of the road between Coggeshall and the A12 manage 0.1mph more averaging 42.2mph.

The westbound A120 between Marks Tey and Braintree saw drivers reach on average 42.4mph.

Across England, the average speed of cars and light vans on 'A' roads rose by 8% last year to 27.3 mph.

This was caused by a steady increase in speeds following the imposing of Covid-19 stay-at-home restrictions in March last year, the DfT said.

Densely populated areas saw the biggest rise in average speeds – up 13% – compared to a 4% rise on rural roads.

The RAC says some drivers across the country took advantage of the emptier roads to drive at "dangerous speeds", including in residential areas.

Simon Williams, RAC road safety spokesman, said the impact of the pandemic on the country's roads was "something of a double-edged sword".

He added: "On the one hand, fewer delays is positive and may well have led to an improvement in overall air quality, but on the flipside, we know that some drivers have taken advantage of quieter roads by driving at dangerous speeds.

"This has been a particular problem on 30 mph roads in residential areas."

Mr Williams said it is important police forces continue to crackdown on excessive speeders and that there are consequences for their "totally unacceptable" actions.

The figures cover only 'A' roads, which account for around 10% of England's highway network but carry around a third of all traffic.

Speeds were measured using samples of vehicles recorded at different times of the day.

The data also reveals the impact of quieter roads on delays along the country's A roads last year.

In Essex, road users were held up 24.4 seconds per mile on average compared to the pace they would have made if travelling up to the speed limit in free-flowing conditions.

That was a decrease of 24% compared to 2019.

The road with the biggest drop in delays was the A1019, with a 49% fall in the average hold-up time.

Across England, delays on A roads fell 23% to 34 seconds per mile on average.

The DfT said the average speed of motorists across the main road network, including motorways, stood at 61.8 mph last year – below the speed limits for the majority of roads where vehicles were recorded.

The department also said average speeds and delays are returning to pre-pandemic levels as Covid-19 restrictions continue to be eased.

But this has not been welcomed by environmental group Friends of the Earth, which now wants increased funding for public transport and cycle ways to keep people away from their cars.

Jenny Bates, a FotE campaigner, said: "There's a serious risk that the benefits to our health and environment that came with quieter roads are going to become a distant memory."