It's some weeks now since we highlighted problems which had been aggravated by attempts to curb joyriding and illegal camping by travellers in Saffron Drive, Allerton.

The mounds of earth created by the Council 18 months ago to act as a deterrent were, in fact, being used by local youths as a battle-ground, and the loose stones as ammunition. In addition, the area was increasingly being used as a dumping ground for stolen cars.

Things have got no better since. In fact, as our story and picture today make distressingly clear, the situation appears to have deteriorated. With burned-out cars everywhere on the barren, bulldozed earth, this looks more like the West Bank than West Yorkshire. One resident says that seven cars were set on fire on the estate in the past week.

Nobody outside a war zone should be expected to tolerate living in desolate conditions like these. The yobs who are causing these problems cannot be left any longer to ride roughshod over the quality of life of the Allerton residents, who surely are entitled to expect swift and effective action to put an end to an intolerable state of affairs.

Bradford Council has promised that the mounds will be reseeded and pathways narrowed to make them impassable for vehicles. The police have carried out "high-visibility patrols" and dealt with what they describe as "a number of traffic offences".

It's hard to avoid suspecting that it might take stronger multi-agency action than that to restore peace, quiet, safety and sanity to Saffron Drive.