Glasgow was the highest offender as 13,373 motorists were found to jump traffic lights in a figure which can account for more than 10 percent of all offences across England, Wales and Scotland. Edinburgh was the second-highest offender with over 8,000 recorded incidents before Nottingham and Bristol were also revealed as high offenders with over 5,000 prosecutions each.
Glasgow recorded almost three times the level of offences compared to the Welsh capital of Cardiff who saw just 4,942 prosecutions for light jumping.
The new data was obtained through the DVLA by car comparison site Select Car Leasing who suggested Glasgow’s high number of traffic lights may be to blame.
Select Car Leasing director Mark Tongue said: “Glasgow has around 50 speed and red-light cameras, a relatively high figure compared with other cities, which may explain why it is the red-light jumping capital.
“But driving habits and behaviours also play a significant part and motorists can hardly blame a camera if they get caught ploughing through traffic when they should be coming to a standstill.”
READ MORE: Councils could soon take over monitoring speeding fines
The Outer Hebrides and parts of West Central and East Central London were also considered low offenders.
The survey revealed total traffic light offences shrunk over the past four years in some positive news for road users.
A total of 39,440 offences for jumping a red light were recorded in 2016 before total prosecutions began to tumble.
Just 33,695 were recorded in 2017 as 33,147 broke the law in 2018. The figure is set to tumble even ore with Select car Leasing estimating a figure of 26,724 for the whole of 2019.
Road users may also be offered a place on a traffic signal course if they went through the light within three seconds of it turning red.
Jumping a red light can also be dangerous and statistics reveal the offence may be one of the biggest culprits for road injuries
Department for Transport data reveals there were 160,597 casualties of all severities in 2018 with 75,095 occurring at junctions.
This means 47 percent of all accidents happen at areas which are mostly governed by traffic lights in a safety warning to road users.
Mark Tongue added: “Few motorists enjoy being stuck at lights, not least at night when there is little other traffic around and you’re in a rush.
“But the law is there to be followed and not broken. By jumping a red traffic light or being a so-called ‘amber gambler’, drivers are creating a very real threat of death to other road users and pedestrians.”