Illegal bike 'epidemic' furthers safety concerns in Carlisle

Not a new phenomenon, numerous incidents of people riding fast, dark coloured motorbikes in the city and surrounding areas in a dangerous way have been happening for years.

These bikes, which have been described as electric motorbikes, illegal motorbikes, and dirt bikes, are being ridden unsafely, sometimes in parks, by schools, on pavements, running red lights, speeding, and being involved in near misses and are an accident waiting to happen, according to people in the area.

But it’s the rise in the number of these bikes, not just locally but across the UK, that is causing more people to feel less safe around roads.

Ryan Godderidge, who lives in the Rosehill area of Carlisle, said there are ‘a couple of young lads’ riding electric motorbikes at night wearing ski masks.

Nicola Godderidge (left) and Ryan Godderidge (Image: Ollie Rawlinson)

“You can’t see them, there are no lights on them,” he said, adding that there have been several times where they’ve ‘come off the pavement’ and cut across people driving on the road.

“I always think about kids or elderly people on paths, it won’t take much for one of these lads to hit them and cause serious injuries.”

Nicola Godderidge, Ryan’s mother, lives in Kingstown, and said: “Just this weekend we saw one at Stanwix going up Eden Bridge on the footpath, we were just like, ‘oh my god’.

“We were nearly knocked over last week by a motorbike on the footpath.”

She added: "It’s the kind of people that drive them as well, they’re not careful, they don’t care, they’re not looking around them, and you just feel that you’ve got to look after yourself, they don’t care if they get in your way.

“When grandchildren come along, it is a worry.”

Ryan added: “You can’t hear them, and they can get up to some serious speeds – they creep up on you.”

Now, a local councillor has written to the chief of Cumbria Constabulary to curb the ‘menace of uninsured, illegal’ motorbikes in the county.

Thomas McLean and August Gardner were visiting from Middlesborough, where it is also an issue.

Thomas McLean (left) and August Gardner (Image: Ollie Rawlinson)

Thomas said: “We get a lot out in Middlesborough, they’ll drive it literally anywhere they can, flying over parks.

“There’s a field by a school and they’re always doing doughnuts there.

“You’ll go to parks in the morning and there’ll be marks left by them all over the place.

“I wouldn’t say unsafe is the word, but I just don’t like it.

“I’m very proud of where I live and I like things to look nice, and people are going around ripping up the grass.

August added: “I’m not concerned for my safety, I’m more concerned they’re going to hit a kid because they’re doing it by schools.”

A couple who were visiting from Suffolk said it's a minor issue there but when visiting Scotland days before it was something they noticed much more.

A man from Liverpool said that the problem has reached Merseyside as well.

However, Kate, who lives in Etterby, said concerns are overplayed: “I've seen them going up Botchergate on a Saturday, but I think they're not hurting anybody.

“They're no worse than people in BMWs; there are far bigger issues that police in this area could be tackling than people riding dirt bikes through the town.”

It’s prompting political action – a councillor for a suburban area of Carlisle has written to the chief of Cumbria Constabulary about the ‘menace of uninsured, illegal electric motorcyclists’.

Brian Wernham, Lib Dem councillor for Stanwix Urban, said the ‘epidemic rise in the number of balaclava-disguised youths riding electric motorcycles in the centre of Carlisle’ has spread to the suburbs.

Brian Wernham (Image: Supplied)

He had a personal encounter and explained: “On Friday night (March 8), after dark, on Stanwix Bank, I saw a youth dressed all in black wearing a black balaclava and riding a black electric motorcycle with no lights on, overtaking traffic on the wrong side of the road.

“Earlier in the day, a friend had seen a similar electric motorcyclist using the cycle path on Eden Bridge shared with pedestrians. 

“The next day I was talking with a resident in my ward who told me that he had just seen another young electric motorcyclist turning out of Stainton Road into Etterby Scaur.

“I feel that the epidemic rise of these instances is due to police inactivity in enforcing the law. 

“I fear that an innocent pedestrian may be seriously injured or worse very soon.”

Cllr Wernham said it’s the chief constable’s job to ‘stop this lawlessness’, and added: “Bottlenecks such as Eden Bridge are an easy place to watch out for these culprits who can be pursued to their homes by police motorcyclists and have the machines confiscated and they can be taken to court and fined. 

“Even if they abandon their motorcycles and run away, at least they will be financially at a great loss. 

“The chief constable should do his job and stop this craze for untrained youths using these uninsured, dangerous machines without safety helmets on our busy paths and narrow roads.”

Cllr Wernham invited the chief constable – Rob Carden – to personally attend the next Border, Fellside and North Carlisle Community Panel meeting on March 27 in Belah to ‘explain his plan of action’.

Independent councillor for Botcherby, Robert Betton, also had run-ins with the bikes in his ward area.

Robert Betton (Image: Cumberland Council)

“I was on the pavement and nearly got knocked over by one of them, they just come whizzing behind you, you can’t hear them coming, they’re like ninjas.

“I’ve heard people in my ward expressing concerns about them – I believe they all come from the internet, the prices are so low and there’ll be lots of them,” Cllr Betton explained.

He added: “The biggest thing is the safety, we’ve got a problem with potholes and all it takes is one person to go over and break their bones or hit something when people are walking.

“They could hit a pothole, go into traffic, and could cause a big accident.

“I see them quite regularly wherever I am, I’ve seen them in the middle of the road pulling wheelies, wearing no helmets, they could get seriously injured.

“It goes into parks as well, I’ve them there.”

Cllr Betton said manufacturers should limit their speed, and more central government attention paid to the issue to introduce bans or restrictions on the import of bikes like these and prevent them from being sold to people who will ride them dangerously or are legally not allowed to do so.

A police spokesperson said: “We take any report of dangerous or anti-social use of vehicles seriously, as there could obviously be consequences of using vehicles in this way.

“Our officers work to tackle this through a variety of ways.

“We continue to gather intelligence on who is using vehicles illegally or in an anti-social manner.

“We also work with local housing providers to take action against tenants who use off-road bikes in an anti-social manner in the community.

“We have taken safe opportunities to detain riders and seize the motorbikes using powers under the Road Traffic Act.

“We have also taken opportunities to educate the public on the legalities of the use of off-road motorbikes and electric motorbikes and electric scooters.

“If people have any specific information as to who is illegally riding these bikes and where they are storing them, then please ring on 101.

“You can also contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”