THE design of Runcorn almost ‘promotes’ anti-social behaviour (ASB), a police officer has claimed.

Sgt Steve Watson, from the Runcorn Beat team, said the unique layout of of the town has made it a hot bed for crime associated with off road bikes – including drug running across county lines.

Speaking at a meeting in Runcorn Town Hall on Tuesday, he said an abundance of underpasses and footpaths where ‘cars can’t go’ was posing challenges for catching people on the so-called ‘death machines’.

He said:  “We resurrected this (Scrambler Bike Operation) in September last year due to the propensity for them to ride around Runcorn.

“I have to say, I have spent 30 years in the police service all over Cheshire, and Runcorn is fairly unique in its design.

“To some extent, it virtually promotes ASB.  There are that many under passes, there are very large green spaces, and if you’re on an off road bike or anything to do with a motor  we can’t catch you.

“We can be right next to you on our motorbike, or police car or push bike or on foot and you only have to ride a short distance on one of the underpasses and we’ve got a mile drive to get to where you are going to.”

“It’s a really unique problem to do something about.  It’s just too dangerous (to chase them).

“It’s too dangerous to try and knock them off like they do in the met.”

Sgt Watson was delivering an update on Operation Scrambler Bike during a Safer Policy and Performance Board meeting.

The committee heard that his beat team had caught 36 illegal bikes since the operation began – more than any other area of Cheshire in that time frame.

He added: “A lot of this is not all anti-social , a percentage of it will be drug running

“A significant per cent of it will be drug running over county lines. It’s a good distribution method.”

Operation Scrambler Bike was re-launched in September, after the summer period saw a surge in reports of  youths and adults riding motorcycles dangerously on parkland, footpaths, towpaths and public roads in Runcorn.

Police are using various tactics, including drones and DNA spray, which allows officers  to mark riders and trace them to the bikes at a later date.

Sgt Watson said both those tactics posed a number of hurdles, and that gathering intelligence was the most effective way to clamp down on the crime.

He said: “We use social media and ask for people to tell us who they are where they live and where the bikes are stored.

“From that intelligence, we can go to the bikes when they are not moving.”

He has previously urged members of the public to come forward with any information about scrambler bikes and their riders, describing it as “pivotal” to the operation.

He said photographs and videos are of particular value, but urged people only to take them “if it is safe to do so.”