As the summer holidays draw to a close, New Taipei City police have stepped up inspections on the Beiyi Highway, penalising youth street racing and noisy modified vehicles — positive news for road user safety.

• The Xindian Precinct, together with vehicle-registration and environmental-protection agencies, carried out joint inspections yesterday and today on the Pinglin section of the Beiyi Highway.
• Over the two days, a total of 107 cars and motorcycles were stopped and checked, resulting in 25 cases of enforcement for speeding, modified vehicles, driving without a licence and other offences, with fines totalling more than NT$100,000.
• The main violation was speeding, with 15 cases, along with crossing double yellow lines, illegally modified vehicle bodies and LED headlights, and driving without a licence.
• In addition, 2 vehicles were ordered to undergo inspection for incomplete reflective markings, and 8 noisy vehicles were reported.
• Police focused on accident-prone bends at the 26, 32 and 34 kilometre marks, where young drivers, lacking experience and easily influenced by their peers, tend to race.

Outlook: Police said they will continue to plan anti-racing operations and strictly enforce against speeding and illegal modifications, so mountain-area inspections can be expected to remain intensified around the start of the new school term.