Watch illegal racers turn road into deafening race track - causing misery to residents

The unfortunate residents of the Kenrick Park estate in West Bromwich happen to live above a start line for both drag racing and car cruising.

Unable to sleep due to the roar of engines and turbos being boosted, those with an unwanted bird's eye view are astounded to see families turn up to watch the illegal 'car meets', seemingly undeterred by last year's tragedy of two teenagers being killed whilst in a crowd of spectators at a car meet they had seen advertised on Snapchat.

For 10 years Jake Russell has watched illegal racers, who regularly top speeds of 100mph on 40mph Kenrick Way, in dismay as they continually outfox the police and flout the law.

Jake said: "The sound is horrific. I live six floors up behind triple glazing and I can hear them. First I hear them parking up on the industrial estate, then to the pub car park. And when I hear spectators turning up I know we are in for a long night.

"There are sometimes up to 200 cars and people, the other night they were holding up ambulances because they were organising the start of a drag race.

"They are very social media savvy, these guys. When I am phoning 999, I know after 10pm there just is not the police resources, but they know it as well. They don't care if they eventually see blue lights. I have taken photos but have been threatened."

Last year two 'car meet' spectators were killed in Oldbury; Ben Corfield, 19, was killed alongside 16-year-old Liberty Charris, after a Nissan Skyline ploughed into the crowd just before midnight on a Sunday. They had seen the car meet advertised on Snapchat.

Circuits can vary but the racing usually takes in Kenrick Way, All Saints Way, in West Bromwich Manor Way in Halesowen, then through Cradley Heath and Dudley via the Birmingham New Road and onwards to Wolverhampton.

Such is the concern about car cruising Walsall, Sandwell, Dudley and Wolverhampton Councils have worked with West Midlands Police to get a high court injunction to get new powers to stop the racing. However, as the videos from the Kenrick estate show, the determination, patience and sheer carelessness of the drivers using public roads as drag race tracks, car cruising is still very much a problem for residents.

Last week the High Court extended it again and it will be ruled on permanently in January next year.

However, though the injunction gives police extra powers to stop racers and even seize cars they have not got extra resources to enforce the injunction.

Jake said: "The injunction is great, in one way, as the only thing that seems to work is when they get nicked. When you take away their wheels. This really annoys them."

Two drivers were caught on Kenrick Way after clocking 80mph and 90mph in May, they pleaded guilty to contempt of court after breaking the injunction. One was sentenced to 23 days imprisonment, which was suspended for 12 months.

The other, who was seen racing at 90mph in the same 40mph zone on the same night, was given 28 days imprisonment, also suspended for 12 months. If they break the injunction again they could have their assets seized.

Councillor Syeda Khatun, Sandwell Council’s Cabinet Member for Public Health and Protection, said: “The two successful court cases show that we take breaches of the injunction very seriously and that those involved in street racing are at risk of going to prison.

“Our priority is the safety of people and tackling the anti-social behaviour that is linked to street racing. People in West Bromwich have been really concerned about street racing on Kenrick Way – I am pleased that two people have been brought to justice for this dangerous activity and it serves as a warning to others, too.”

The car cruising community share race and meet locations on various online platforms, many in private groups which the police cannot penetrate.

The popularity of watching high-performance cars on residential roads has become a major concern especially due to the danger posed to the drivers, spectators and other road users.

West Bromwich Central Councillor Tirath Singh Dhatt vowed to help Jake and fellow residents after hearing the noise of the racers whilst knocking doors on the estate.

He said: "If people in the tower blocks can hear it six floors up then on the ground it will be half a mile. Knocking doors we found so many people who were being really affected by this, from pensioners to young people. We met some brothers who were doing all the right things, like reporting the racing on the app, but if it is the same night it is too late.

"These car meets are like an event. There can be 200 cars some nights. Authorities have to work together. The council, police, the PCC, the courts - it needs to be a joined-up approach. There needs to be intelligence-gathering, there needs to be prosecutions and the fear of prosecutions and seizures of cars.

Security expert Jake added: "They block off the road to hold their own drag races - the other night they were holding up ambulances behind them as they got in place ready for a drag start.

"I have been here 10 years, we had a little respite during Covid but it was back again after lockdown. Recently with the help of Councillor Dhatt, the police seem to be upping their game. I have a lot of sympathy for the police, I work in the night time economy and know there is just not the manpower after 10pm."

During a round table meeting with councillors, police officers, West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster, Shadow Police Minister Alex Foster and West Bromwich Parliamentary candidate Sarah Coombes, Jake confronted the PCC.

He said: "I have emailed the Police and Crime Commissioner at least five times this year and nothing, I just got a generic car theft email, which was really disappointing. But I know there is not the resources."

West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster agrees there needs to be more resources to implement the injunction.

He said: "It comes down to resources, each of the seven local authorities have a separate agreement with the police, and we want to join this up so there is just one agreement. I have been campaigning to keep the money which motorists pay in fixed penalties fines in the West Midlands, the money currently goes to Westminster.

"That would be £1.7m we could invest in law enforcement, locally."

Sergeant Paul Bishop has been tasked with ensuring Sandwell's roads are not being used as race tracks and its fields are free of off-roading motorcyclists and uninsured scooter riders.

He believes progress is slowly being made against the car cruisers in West Bromwich. He said: "This is specialist work, which requires skilled workers, we have automated stingers now. We have put a camera near the island as that is where cars slow down, however, we cannot just put a speed camera anywhere.

"There needs to be certain criteria. Data has to be collected, and the trouble with Kenrick Way is for the most part motorists drive sensibly. So the 80mph and 90mph speeds in the data will be from a certain time and be equalled out by the rest of the day."

Jake is astounded at the illegal drivers' knowledge of the road he calls home. "A few years ago they resurfaced the road, the racers left it a few weeks until the tarmac had settled perfectly and then returned, they had been given their perfect race track - you could not make it up."