West Bay traders voice concerns over boy racers in resort

Concerns over dangerous driving and anti-social behaviour around the esplanade and car parks in the resort have reached an all-time high with traders branding the situation 'a nightmare'.

One such business is The Station Kitchen, a restaurant in Station Road, which runs out of old railway carriages on the site of the former railway station.

Owners Claire and Ross Moore expressed their worries after excessive speeding from boy racers caused stones from the car park to fly up in the air and shatter windows of the popular restaurant.

The damaged carriage dates back to 1911 and replacements to these antique windows have to be specially made - which can cost an excess of £800 plus VAT.

This is the second window that has been smashed due to the boy racers in the area – an issue which Claire describes as a “nightmare.”

She said: “They race from 6pm to 11pm and it’s causing havoc. It is really concerning and a danger for customers, staff, and general public.”

Claire said these incidents are part of an ongoing issue with anti-social behaviour in the area, with cars revving loudly, playing music to high levels and using the esplanade as a social hangout.

 “We’ve been here since 2015 and it’s been happening for at least four years. It’s a regular occurrence where these people race like hell down West Bay Road.

“We leave late at night at around 11pm and they’re just bombing it down. It’s only going to be a matter of time before someone gets seriously injured and killed, it’s so bad.”

Tracey Jovanovic, manager of Westpoint Apartments, has had issues with boy racers on the Esplanade for 18 months and has been in contact with Dorset Council to push for an increased CCTV presence around the area.

She said: “There is no need to rev engines for hours, there’s no need to have the lights on full beams outside people’s homes and there’s no need to race and drive dangerous. Someone is going to get killed.”

With these security cameras, Tracey hoped it could help police locate the racers who have often fled the scene before police arrive.

Tracey said the council were unable to install CCTV as the majority of the lampposts were not suitable for the installation.

Following this setback, she is calling on the local community to take action against the boy racers by reporting incidents of anti-social behaviour to the police.

“The more we report it the more they can profile it and police will see it is a consistent issue. This could lead to more funding to deal with it but that will only happen if people continue to report it.”

“I’d just like these young people to know we’re watching, reporting and will continue to do so.”