Illegal off-road bikers in Walsall set to be targeted in anti-social behaviour crackdown by police

Officers will be issuing warning notices and seizing vehicles in the near future as they look to hit down hard on illegal off-road bikers causing misery for residents in Walsall.

The operation will focus on Coppice Lane and Engine Lane in Brownhills and Glastonbury Crescent on the Mossley estate, but will also see officers deployed across Walsall to target people on illegal bikes and issue them with Section 59 notices, which warn that the vehicle will be seized if they keep breaking the law.

A spokesman for West Midlands Police said: "We fully understand the concern and frustration which off-road bikes cause in some areas of the Walsall borough and we're working with partners including Staffordshire Police and Walsall Council to carry out targeted activity.

"We’ve received reports of illegal bikers in areas including Coppice Lane and Engine Lane in Brownhills and Glastonbury Crescent on the Mossley estate but we realise there are issues in other areas of the borough. 

"We’ve listened to your concerns and under Op Adhesion we’ll be carrying out operations in the near future targeting people on illegal bikes, issuing Section 59 notices which warns the rider that we will seize their vehicle if they continue to flout the law.

"We can turn to support from the National Police Air Service (NPAS) as well as our drone team and we also have a dedicated off- road bike team who use motorbikes to apprehend offenders."

Sergeant Mo Khalid, from our Problem Solving Team, said: “We understand the nuisance illegal bikers cause and the impact their actions have on people’s lives. This is why we’re doing all we can to tackle the problem. 

"Under Op Adhesion we’ve made arrests and seized dozens of bikes over the last couple of years.

“We’re now started to receive complaints from our community about ASB and in response we’re stepping up our efforts to combat the problem. 

"This includes planning a number of operations where we will be working with our partners to tackle illegal off-road bikers.

“We’ll will be targeting people who use these vehicles in an anti-social and dangerous way. We are warning offenders who continue to drive these machines illegally and putting the public at risk that they will be caught. 

"Their vehicles will be seized. Illegal off-road biking is having a serious impact on our local communities and we simply won’t tolerate it.”

The force has urged residents to continue to report any issues so that it has up-to-date descriptions and locations via Live Chat on its website or by ringing 101.

For more information about off-road biking go to Vehicle nuisance involving cars, bikes and mopeds | West Midlands Police