Polish drivers love speeding, according to the results of a poll carried out by Pentor for the National Road Safety Council.

According to the Pentor research, 70 percent of respondents associate fast driving with pleasure, freedom and self-assurance; 85 percent of drivers confess to breaking speed limits and half of Polish drivers do not believe that exceeding speed limits by 30 km/h is reprehensible, with only 17 percent severely criticising speedsters who exceed the limit by more than 50 km/h. 

The speed limit was raised in Poland on 1 January from 130 to 140 km/h on motorways, making it one of the highest limits in the EU.

The number of road accidents in Poland has been decreasing, however - over the past ten years it has halved and dropped by 21 percent over the past two years.

Nonetheless, in 2010 there were 38,000 accidents in which almost 4,000 people were killed and more than 48,000 injured.

Polish roads still remain some of the most dangerous in the European Union, according to statistics. (ek/pg)