Video shows car cruisers causing 'misery' for many in Milton Keynes this weekend

Residents kept awake by 'extensive and organised' event on main grid road in the early hours
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Anti-social car cruises and races along MK's grid roads are revving up into a real problem, say residents.

They say thety are being kept awake more and more by the noise of high performance cars using the Milton Keynes grid as a race track.

In the early hours of Saturday morning several people called police about noises from multiple cars starting from 1am on the H3 Monks way in the area of Newport Pagnell, Willen and Tongwell.

Skid marks left behind under a city underpassSkid marks left behind under a city underpass
Skid marks left behind under a city underpass

"I was an extensive and organised cruising event," said one weary resident.

"I first called 101 around 1.15am to report that multiple cars could be heard racing. The police did not seem to be aware of the activity," he said.

"By approximately 1.30am it was clear that the number of cars joining the cruise had increased dramatically and I would estimate that it could be very loudly heard in excess of one mile from the scene - such was the noise coming from racing and revving of engines."

The man went out in his own car to investigate and saw around 80 cars and 100 people either taking part or watching from the sides of the dual carriageway, He recorded the cars on video.

"I was driving a steady 50 mph so you can estimate the involved cars were driving in excess of the dual carriageway speed limit," he said,

At 2am, the cars could still be heard and many people, particularly in Newport Pagnell, took to social media to complain they'd been kept awake.

Their complaints led to a flood of responses defending the car cruisers' right to "have fun" and engage in "harmless" activity.

But other people are furious and say the drivers should be prosecuted.

Currently the government is planning to trial new 'noise cameras' to crack down on illegal vehicles

They have commissioned a prototype noise camera to be tested at several locations in the UK over the next several months. The new technology will aim to detect illegal, excessively noisy vehicles, helping create quieter streets.

The noise cameras could work like speed cameras to target law-breaking drivers automatically, says the Department for Transport.

Transport Secretary, Chris Grayling said: "Noise pollution makes the lives of people in communities across Britain an absolute misery and has very serious health impacts. This is why I am determined to crack down on the nuisance drivers who blight our streets. New technology will help us lead the way in making our towns and cities quieter, and I look forward to seeing how these exciting new cameras could work."

Meanwhile police and MK Council are also working together to make organised car cruises a thing of the past in MK. Last year they introduced a Public Space Protection Order to ban antisocial car cruising locally.

MK police have powers to issue fines of up to £1,000 on the spot and have fined 31 people so far.

But last week a "dangerous" car cruiser became the Milton Keynes’ first offender to appear before court - and he was fined almost £700.

Kevin Johnson was originally given a £100 Fixed Penalty Notice for anti social car cruising. But he failed to pay and was ordered to appear in court,

Cabinet Member for Community Safety, Cllr Lauren Townsend said: “I hope this case sends out a strong message that anti-social behaviour associated with car cruising will not be tolerated in MK. It’s dangerous and can have fatal consequences – we won’t allow you to abuse our roads and put our residents’ safety at risk.”

However, the council says most drivers caught taking part in anti-social car cruising behaviours locally are NOT were not residents of Milton Keynes.

Investigations have shown they come from neighbouring areas, including Northamptonshire, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, as well as from further afield in Oxfordshire, Leicestershire and Kent.