A protection order is set to be issued in an attempt to stop illegal car meets near a large industrial estate. Police were called to a gathering of drivers in Mile End Road, a residential street that stretches past Colwick Country Park towards Colwick Industrial Estate, on the evening of Saturday, February 18, following reports from neighbours of noise as drivers gathered there to race their cars.
But local councillors and residents say that it isn't the first time it has happened. According to them, motorists have been meeting up most Saturdays, causing "an absolute nuisance" by "racing" their vehicles up and down the nearby streets and up to the nearby roundabout.
Gedling Borough Council is now drawing up a Public Space Protection Order (PSPO), powers to stop such activity from happening in the future. The car meets form part of wider problems in the area, with concerns having been raised with speeding on the nearby A612 Colwick Loop Road and the new Colliery Way access road, north east of Mile End Road.
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Deputy Leader of Gedling Borough Council, Councillor Michael Payne, said: “I am appalled at the illegal car cruising events happening in Colwick, Netherfield and surrounding communities around the Gedling Access Road.
"We have requested further action by the police and we are issuing a Public Space Protection Order to outlaw these nuisance events from taking place. The order will be issued as quickly as possible to give local residents, who have to put up with this anti-social behaviour on their doorsteps, some respite.
"This is not going to solve the problem on its own, we need a county-wide injunction preventing these events from moving from car park to car park and we will be asking our colleagues at Nottinghamshire County Council and the Police to work together to find a long term solution to stop these gatherings."
Neighbours in Colwick spoke of some of the problems. Julian Smith, 59, who works in Derby but lives nearby, said: "It's at least every other Saturday. I think the last one was probably between 9.30-to-10.30pm.
"Luckily we're still up at that time but it's very frustrating. They start at the top there and drive all the way down to the end where the roundabout is.
"The road is pretty smooth so I think it's easier for them to drive up and down without damaging their cars. It's annoying. My wife came out the other night shouting and telling them to p**s off!
Paula Ebbs, 52, said: "Well they're just always racing each other up and down, up and down. You can literally see the flames backfiring out of the cars. It's not something that bothers me a lot but it can be get very noisy. It's a little scary.
"They do sort of circuits around the area, race each other up and around the roundabout and then come back again. They get some high speeds going; they really put their foot down.
"It can be disturbing for people trying to sleep. We know people on Ramblers Close [a nearby road] who heard them too."
Martin Thompson, 55, who also lives in Mile End Road, said: "There are more than 10 of them [those involved in the car meets]. I'd say it's definitely in excess of 20. There's a car park next to the park and you can see they do spins on the cars around there. If you go down the road it's an industrial estate so it can become rather loud."
Councillor Mike Adams, who represents Carlton East for the Conservatives on the county council, and who represents Trent Valley on the borough council, labelled the issue "disgusting". He says people of a range of ages live nearby and that the "nuisance" caused is making it difficult for them to get a bit of peace.
He said: "The anti-social drivers in Colwick are an absolute nuisance and causing an obscene amount of noise to residents, it's disgusting, and people shouldn't be treated like that. They are a range of ages, some will have young families, elderly grandparents, or just live in quiet estates themselves. Surely, they can see they are causing a menace to people's lives, who just want a bit of peace after a busy day.
"I visited residents on Stratford Close and heard their experiences. In their case the shape of the business estate next to them is like a bowl and it amplifies the noise. I have met with a local landowner and am working to secure a gated option to prevent access to that business park.
"I was on the phone at 10.20pm on Saturday night coordinating with residents and landowners. I would like to thank Nottinghamshire Police whose response in one resident's words, was "swift" and cars dispersed quickly.
"I would like to appeal directly to cruisers and say, please stop this, the police are onto you and local agencies are ramping up their plans.
"Some residents are calling for vehicles to be seized and crushed for repeat offenders. I hope this doesn't end up happening, they heed the warning and all that money they invest in their performance cars isn't wasted."
Sergeant James Carrington, of Nottinghamshire Police’s Gedling Operation Reacher team, said: “Our officers attended Mile End Road, Colwick, on the evening of Saturday (18 February 2023) after receiving reports of drivers gathering there to race their cars.
“The Gedling Operation Reacher team carry out targeted patrols of the Colwick and Netherfield areas on a regular basis in a bid to deter this type of antisocial behaviour. We don’t want to see these illegal gatherings on our streets, for the simple reason that they put other road users and pedestrians at risk while providing a general nuisance to local residents too.
“Breaking up this car cruising activity is one of our priorities when we’re on duty in the evenings, and we’ve been reasonably successful in disrupting these cars meets by providing a visible police presence. I’d like to reiterate just how seriously we take this as a neighbourhood policing team and would urge anyone who witnesses this type of behaviour to report it to the police immediately by calling 101.”
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