‘Like being in the fast and furious’: World Heritage Site community ‘held hostage’ by 'gangs' of boy racers

4 October 2024, 06:09 | Updated: 4 October 2024, 06:10

Residents of South Queensferry have told LBC they’re sleeping in baths, suffering mentally and physically and feel ‘let down’ by the police as ‘gangs’ of boy racers gather on the seafront on a regular basis.

The area, on the outskirts of Edinburgh, is home to the Forth Road Bridge and a car park car enthusiasts like to gather in to socialise and show off their cars. People living there say speeds of 50mph have been recorded within a 20mph limit.

“It's become a dread every evening,” Andy Scott, who lives on the seafront, told LBC.

“Cars arrive with the engines revving and the backfiring. It keeps going until the real shenanigans start – the racing around the circuit, the tooting of the horns, the serious revving of engines.”

Karen, Andy’s neighbour, told LBC she doesn’t feel safe: “It's very, very intimidating. Even if you drive by, you know, you get the stares and think ‘we live here, you know, what are you doing here?’

“It's absolutely territorial and it's not just one gang. There's a few different groups”

David, another resident, said his wife is exhausted as she can’t escape the noise: “She has tried various rooms around the house and she even slept in the bath one night, which that, to me, is extreme.

“Who in this world should have to put up with that? This is a civilised world, a civilised country, and we have to suffer in this way.

“The community is being held hostage, you could say, by what's happening in that car park.”

The ongoing racing and noise pollution may even be impacting the health of people living there.

“I'm not getting much sleep. I've got a long commute, and I'm tired,” Karen told LBC. “I have been some nights crying, worrying.

“How am I going to cope with my job? I work for the NHS. It's not an easy job. I have started to get palpitations. So, it's affecting me physically as well as mentally.”

LBC understands reports of anti-social behaviour and dangerous driving around the Forth Bridges Viewpoint car park are received by Police Scotland on a regular basis but action is rarely taken.

“They’re very stretched, and there's only two people covering the whole of the west of Edinburgh,” Andy said. “Even when they turn up in the police cars, then suddenly these guys are some of the most well-behaved people in the country and as soon as the police car leaves, it starts all over again.

“You do feel let down. You pay taxes, you pay council taxes, and hope that you will be protected from things like this. You don't feel safe and secure.”

However, a lack of police action makes some residents believe vigilante action is only ‘a matter of time’.

“I have witnessed a bad attack on a couple of the racers by a member of the public who was in his van, who basically lost it, and drove right at them,” Lana said.

“That was more or less someone that just thought ‘right, okay, you're going to keep harassing me. I'm just going to take the law into my own hands.’”

The community of South Queensferry recently held a public meeting to discuss the ongoing impacts of anti-social driving and behaviour on the seafront. They say the issue began to ramp up during the 2020 Coronavirus lockdowns.

During the meeting, several people said their pets had been killed on the roads because of anti-social driving. Businesses also said they were losing customers.

“I have spoken to businesses from the harbour right through to the High Street, and clearly they are being impacted,” David said. “An iconic inn, which dates back 140 years, they are now being impacted by repeat business.

“They've had to relocate guests to rear bedrooms. The guests have asked for refunds. There's a reputational issue, and those businesses rely on repeat business and good customer feedback.”

Some homeowners are now thinking of calling it quits because they can’t see an end to the noise, but even have concerns about selling.

“Absolutely, we've been looking at moving house,” Karen told LBC. “But then I get really angry about it, and think, why should these people force me out of my house? This was going to be our last move, our forever home.

“But then, that's a worry as well. Because this is well known, am I going to be able to sell my house?”

MSP for Edinburgh Western and leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats Alex Cole-Hamilton has urged the Scottish Government to do more to prevent the anti-social and potentially dangerous behaviour seen in South Queensferry.

He wants to see a taskforce set up and also suggests giving local authorities the power to set up and operate their own speed cameras.

“There are some Facebook groups where people who are car enthusiasts, let’s say, who like to race these cars, have declared me public enemy number one,” he told LBC. “Look I’m sure I’ll live I’m sure I’ll cope.

“My first duty ,absolutely and always, is to my constituents. This has been keeping them awake at night for four years, pets have been killed, hotels have lost trade, people aren’t getting any sleep and it may only be a matter of time before we see a human fatality on the roads as well.”

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We are aware of the concerns raised by residents in relation to the use of vehicles in an anti-social manner in the South Queensferry area, and are working with partners to address these.

Anyone with information regarding any form of anti-social behaviour is asked to call Police Scotland on 101.”

First Minister of Scotland John Swinney said: “I am very sorry to hear of the circumstances in South Queensferry. It is a beautiful part of our country and an iconic location, and I am sorry that members of the public are experiencing what they are experiencing.

“The government engages substantively on the question of road safety. The Cabinet Secretary for Transport has been briefing cabinet on her concerns about road fatalities, which are a very serious and current problem, so that issue is very much on the cabinet’s agenda.

“I am very happy to have discussions with Mr Cole-Hamilton on the subject and to determine what further action can be taken.

“There may be some legislative issues that may be worth considering. I fear that some of those will not be within our areas of responsibility because they are road traffic issues, but I am happy to explore all possibilities.”