Motoring journalist counts cost of near-100mph video

A social media motoring journalist has been ordered to pay more than £1,200 after posting a video online that showed him driving at almost 100mph on a public road.

Joe Achilles – known for his presence on YouTube, where he has almost 60,000 subscribers – shared footage on Facebook of him driving an Audi R8 at high speed along the A57 in Derbyshire towards Sheffield and in the face of oncoming traffic, but the video was spotted by officers from Derbyshire Constabulary’s Roads Policing Unit.

An investigation that established distances and times between landmarks found the car to be travelling at speeds of up to 93mph – nearly twice the 50mph limit. Eleven average speeds were calculated within the clip, filmed last November, with the lowest coming in at 58mph.

Achilles, 40, of Village Road, Denham, Uxbridge, was summonsed to Southern Derbyshire Magistrates’ Court, where he pleaded guilty to speeding. His driving licence was endorsed with six penalty points, with the social media personality also handed a £615 fine and ordered to pay costs of £620.

After the case, Sgt Adam Shipley said: “This type of driving is careless, reckless and selfish. On this occasion, thankfully nobody died, but all too often the outcome is very different. For a man who drives for a profession, I am appalled that he seemingly has so little value for the lives of other road users.

“The roads of the UK are not racetracks and should not be used as such. Strapping a GoPro to the side of a car and driving in this manner – all in a bid to get viewers on social media – is quite frankly pathetic.”

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