Calls are growing for tougher action from the police and land owners to tackle quad bikers accessing and damaging Calverley Woods.
In recent weeks there have been complaints from local residents relating to noise nuisance and pedestrian safety in the woods and fields on Carr Hill Drive in the village.
Farsley and Calverley councillors Amanda Carter (Cons) and Peter Carlill (lab) are now calling for stronger action to stop this anti-social behaviour that is becoming a real problem for residents. She said:
“A number of Calverley residents have been in touch with me to express their concerns about quad bikes and 4x4s getting into Calverley Woods and causing real disturbance.
“It is not only the noise nuisance, I am also worried about pedestrian safety in the woods and on the fields behind Carr Hill Drive as in my view these vehicles are travelling too fast.
“The police are working really hard in our area but I would like to see some additional police patrols to clamp down on the drivers of the quad bikes in particular and it would be helpful if the land owner promptly repaired fences which would make access to the woods much harder for these vehicles. We need strong action before there is an accident.”
Cllr Carlill called on ‘cross border working’ to tackle the problem. He said:
“Quad bikes are a huge issue across the whole ward, with reports covering all the way from Stanningley Bottom, through Farsley and all the way down to Calverley Woods.
“After raising this as a priority with the neighbourhood policing team over the past year there have been a number of days of action arranged with the Police Off-Road Bike Team which have had an impact, especially in reducing these incidents on residential streets.
“The areas around Calverley Woods however continue to be a real concern which needs regular cross-border working to tackle.”