A POLICE inspector has told Councillors that more work will be done in the South of Bradford to try and identify people who make neighbours’ lives a misery with anti social quad bike use.

Inspector Andy Thornton was speaking to members of Bradford Council’s Bradford South Area Committee about the issue of anti social quad and motorcycle use at a meeting on Thursday evening.

He told Councillors that two wards in the Constituency, Royds and Tong, had some of the highest numbers of anti social riding reports in West Yorkshire.

And members heard that police would soon reach out to communities more in an attempt to identify the offenders, and where they are keeping their vehicles.

Michael Churley, Community Safety officer, said: “Bradford South is an area where teams are trying to do a bit more work. It is one of the areas of the district where we get the most complaints.

Police 'frustrated' that communities don't always pass on information about anti social bikers

“We have to look at how we engage with communities a bit better and get them to come forward with information a bit more.

“We have to help communities understand what is and what isn’t illegal. Sometimes people see quads on the road and don’t know if they are being ridden legally.”

Insp Thornton said it was difficult for police to respond to calls fast enough to catch the riders, and so action needed to look at where bikes are stored and find out who the riders are.

He said: “Im not naive enough to not realise there will be many members of the community who know who these people are and where they store their vehicles.

“We need to get these people to trust us with this information.

He told members that anti social riders had a “disregard for their own safety and the safety of others” and this meant that police responding to calls often chose not to begin dangerous chases, especially in residential areas.

He said he “appreciated the frustration” people had with police when it seemed they weren’t acting.

But he told members that Operation Steerside had made numerous vehicle seizures and arrests in the past year.

A new communications strategy involving police and Bradford Council would be rolled out soon to give people more information about how they can help tackle anti social riding in their area. And work would be done with local schools to discourage young people from riding illegally.”

Three locations where there were regular reports of anti social riding had been identified, and the force was looking at ways of making these areas less attractive to riders, including closing ginnels.

To be used on a public road, quad bikes should have tax, insurance, a valid MOT certificate, be registered with DVLA and show a number plate.

Councillor Matthew Bibby (Cons, Queensbury) asked if police had any indication how many quads and off road bikes in the region were illegal.

Insp Thornton said there was no exact figure available, but said many of the vehicles people complained to police about were likely to be operating illegally, or be stolen vehicles.

He said that with vehicles available for relatively low prices, many saw the rewards of riding without tax or insurance to be greater than the risks of having their vehicle seized.

Insp Thornton told members that as enforcement work increased, more riders would “think twice” about anti social use of quads and bikes.