HOONS could be held back from gathering at a Hunter hotspot as a council considers changes to the road, but said it ultimately could not control driver or crowd behaviour.
Two spectators were injured when a 22-year-old man allegedly lost control of his Ford Falcon while performing a burnout at a notorious intersection at North Arm Cove on Friday night.
Residents revealed they had raised concerns about the intersection - which they said was covered in tyre marks and often scattered with debris - multiple times with MidCoast Council in the past six months.
In a statement to the Newcastle Herald, the council said it was aware of the crash on March 15 which saw a 20-year-old woman and a 14-year-old girl hospitalised.
Director of infrastructure and engineering services Robert Scott confirmed council had been looking at ways to prevent hoon activity in the area before the incident unfolded.
He said staff had been looking at installing high-friction reseal and raised pavement markers at the Gooreengi Road and Somerset Avenue intersection.
The quiet stretch of road is flat and wide as it was the old highway north from Newcastle.
"We're still looking at these options and hope to have something in the coming months to try to deter this behaviour," Mr Scott said.
But, he said council could not control the actions of drivers or people choosing to gather and watch.
"The problem is we can install all the deterrents we want that will cost the ratepayer, with the risk that these people will just find another section of road for this," he told the Herald.
"In this particular area of the road network, it is difficult to deter anti-social behaviour.
"Unfortunately, it comes down to individuals' own decision-making as to whether to partake in or observe this behaviour."
North Arm Cove Community Association president Bob Reid revealed in the aftermath of the recent crash that residents of the small town had held grave fears about the hooning hotspot for six months.
He said he had raised concerns with MidCoast Council multiple times since August last year and had made police reports about the late-night meet-ups he said seemed to occur at least monthly at the intersection.
"They are a major safety issue, for both residents driving through the centre of it to get home, and for the burnout participants and observers," he told the Herald at the time.
"It was only a matter of time before someone - a participant, a bystander, or a resident - was injured from these events."
Port Stephens Manning Highway Patrol's Fatih Samsa urged the community to report illegal activity to Crime Stoppers and local police, which helped officers focus resources and efforts into key areas.
"Officers across the district continue to target and stop road users who drive in a dangerous manner, particularly in known hotspot areas," he said.
Port Stephens Hunter police were called to Somerset Avenue at about 11.40pm on Friday.
Police allege a white Ford Falcon sedan had been performing burnouts in front of a crowd when the driver lost control and slammed into a power pole.
The car struck the woman and teenager standing next to it before erupting in flames, and the driver fled the scene, according to detectives.
Fire and Rescue NSW crews extinguished the car fire and the Ford was seized by police for forensic testing.
Specialist officers from the Crash Investigation Unit were called in to comb the scene.
A 22-year-old man was arrested on Monday and is expected to front Raymond Terrace Local Court in May on a string of charges stemming from the alleged incident, after he was granted bail.
