A MAJOR motorcycle safety campaign has seen the number of injured riders fall by 58 per cent across the West Mercia area, police have revealed.

A total of 450 vehicles were stopped during the Bike Smart Bike Safe campaign, which also involved high-profile patrols near accident blackspots such as the A44 in Worcestershire and the A49 in Herefordshire.

Fifteen motorcyclists will be appearing in court after clocking up speeds of more than 100mph and one was caught doing more than 120mph.

"We'll continue to target the irresponsible minority of motorcyclists who continue to put their own and other road users' lives at risk by driving at excessive speeds or in a dangerous manner," said Sgt John Roberts of the force's traffic and operations department.

"The weather during the campaign was fine and sunny and that led to an increase in the number of motorcycles on the roads in West Mercia.

"We're therefore very pleased that the number of injuries was reduced so significantly."

During the campaign last month, 13 motorcyclists were injured in collisions on the roads compared to a total of 31 during the same period last year.

Serious injuries to motorcyclists were down 65 per cent - with six being recorded compared to 17 in 2000 - and slight injuries were cut by half to seven.

Two motorcyclists died during the campaign, a figure unchanged from year to year.

The causes of these two deaths are still being investigated by officers.

Police targeted all road users to raise awareness among other drivers, as poor observation by other motorists is a contributing factor in a number of crashes involving motorcyclists.

The campaign was launched by former star of The Bill, Eric Richard, who played Sgt Bob Cryer in the Carlton TV series.