Someone could be killed by racers, residents say
An innocent person could be killed by cars racing on a busy road in Kent, residents say.
The growing issue of racing on Bob Dunn Way in Dartford is proving an issue for locals who wanted to speak anonymously to the BBC.
One said: "We see cars speeding - they're bragging on TikTok and Instagram that they're doing 135mph [217km/h]. They're drifting around the roundabouts, doing stunts and all sorts, making it dangerous for residents to come and go from their own homes."
Another says they believe someone is "going to get killed" and it may well be a person completely unconnected to the racing.
One resident said when they tried to call the police about one of the meet-ups, people there started attacking their van.
"When they started pulling on the doors, and shaking the van, and abusing, showing me their private parts, it wasn't pleasant," they added.
Another resident said: "You just hear them all screeching, revving.
"Especially with the hot weather we've been having, you can't have your windows open because you can't get to sleep."
The activity, which the first resident described as a "highly organised meet up with spectators", has been flagged to Dartford MP Jim Dickson who raised the issue in Parliament.
Dickson told Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood that the racing was "clearly dangerous for other road users" as well as "really disruptive" for residents.
Mahmood says the authorities, including the government, have to do "everything we can to clamp down on this emerging pattern of behaviour that glorifies this type of activity that can lead to incredibly dangerous situations".
Speaking to BBC Radio Kent, Dickson said it was "deeply worrying and disturbing what we're seeing".
He said there were "parallels" with the incident near Middlesbrough which saw seven people, including two police officers, killed when a car travelling the wrong way down a dual carriageway crashed into a force vehicle.
"It's unacceptable, it's dangerous, it's appalling for local residents and we really need to see an end to it," he added.
Acknowledging the issue, a Kent Police spokesperson says the force is aware the "actions of a small numbers of individuals can have a significant impact on local residents".
There will be road checks at "key times" and "those who endanger other road users or persistently cause a nuisance can expect to have the car seized," the force says.
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