DRIVERS have admitted their frustrations over slow vehicles on the roads after figures showed the number of casualties from crashes caused by sluggish motorists increased by almost a third last year.

Analysis of Department for Transport data revealed 175 people were injured and two were killed in such accidents on Britain’s roads in 2017.

This represented a 31 per cent increase in total casualties on the previous 12 months. The figures relate to crashes when someone is driving too slow for the conditions or a slow moving vehicle was a contributory factor.

Drivers in Highcliffe, where there is often slow moving traffic, gave honest assessments of the situation.

Magda Rybinska, 33, a hospitality worker from Highcliffe, said: “I passed my driving test recently. I still probably drive too slowly.

“I know it can be a problem and is dangerous. I’m still not confident on the roads, especially when it is narrow like the high street with cars parked on the side of the road.

“I think everyone needs to get a bit of experience.”

Matt West, 23, a student who moved to Highcliffe last year, said: “I’m fed up with the slow drivers you get on the road.

“If you cannot make a quick decision on the road then you should not be on the road, it’s dangerous and unpredictable.”

Shirley and Tony Coleman, who live in Reading and have a holiday home near Highcliffe, said they notice drivers are slower around the borough of Christchurch.

“It is frustrating,” Mr Coleman said. “There is a big danger to it and you see people on the motorway doing 50 miles per hour all the time.”

Soren Bailey, who works in a hairdressers, said: “We have a lot of elderly people who can drive a bit slow, which can be frustrating at times, but overall I don’t think it is too bad.”

Driving too slowly on any road can result in the motorist being penalised for careless driving, which normally carries a £100 fine and three points on a licence.

AA president Edmund King warned that “driving like a snail can be as dangerous as driving like a cheetah”.

Mr King said he often sees motorists slow down and hesitate when joining a motorway.

“I was in a queue of five cars joining the M3 recently when the lead driver was driving at approximately 25 mph,” he added. “It was incredibly dangerous.”