BOY racers accused of using a road for high-speed meet-ups have been told their behaviour will not be tolerated - after the police revealed a plan of action to stop them in their tracks.
Gatherings on the Dearne Valley Parkway have caused outrage, with complaints made to the police resulting in the issue being made a long-term priority by the Barnsley South Neighbourhood Policing Team.
Residents say they have witnessed night-time races taking place on the route, as well as boy racers performing handbrake turns.
The Chronicle can reveal that meetings have been held with residents to keep them in the loop and more operations will be scheduled in to deter boy racers from going to the area.
A public meeting will discuss the progress made at Darfield Community Centre on April 14.
A police statement said: “A joint meeting was organised with members of the community, the roads policing group, Barnsley Council and the three neighbourhood policing teams that cover the Dearne Valley Parkway.
“A range of options and tactics were discussed to target this and we’ve committed to joint operations over the coming weeks.
“Increased patrols in the area have been done and landlords have secured waste land used for meets.
“This will not be tolerated and those responsible will be dealt with robustly with the full force of the law.
“A big thank you to the members of the public who keep calling in to give us the heads up where the group had moved to next as they allowed us to net them effectively.
“Excess speed and drifting displays have occurred, creating risks to other road users along with associated noise nuisance.”
Police have called on the public to get involved with Operation Snap, which urges witnesses to report footage of people committing offences.
They can submit any recordings and provide times, dates and registration plates of the vehicles responsible.
Coun James Higginbottom added: “It’s very welcome that South Yorkshire Police are carrying out major operations on the Dearne Valley Parkway to disrupt illegal and dangerous car meets.
“These meets are a huge nuisance for local residents and put the lives of all road users at risk, so I welcome this action being taken.
“Local councillors have been pushing on this for some time so it’s good to see proactive work from our policing teams taking place.
“These kinds of operations rely on reports and intelligence from the public so if you’re aware of any incidents of illegal car meets please report via 101 or the online portal.”
