Hednesford Tesco car park reopens as boy racers move on
Tesco in Hednesford is reopening its car park on Sunday nights after a police crackdown on boy racers was declared a success.
Staffordshire Police gained permission from the High Court in December to outlaw high-speed racing and car cruising along The Orbital, Eastern Way, Watling Street, Lichfield Road, Walsall Road and Avon Road.
The powers threaten car cruisers with two years behind bars and allow officers to disperse gangs. However, displacement from the order saw the giant new Tesco have to close its car park on Sunday evenings to deter boy racers congregating and racing there as a result. It came just two months after the new store had opened.
However, the store has now finally been able to reopen its car park, and police say that the problems appear to have gone.
Spokesman for Tesco, Emma Capon, said: "The car park has now reopened on Sunday evenings but we will continue to monitor the situation and work closely with the police on this issue."
Chief Inspector Carl Ratcliffe, commander of the Cannock Chase Policing Team, said: "We have not been made aware of any issues at Tesco in Hednesford in recent weeks concerning boy racers, or any problems with displacement in the local area. However, we are not complacent, and our officers will continue to liaise with Tesco to prevent and combat anti-social behaviour."
Leader of Cannock Chase Council and chairman of the Hednesford Community Forum, Councillor George Adamson, congratulated both Staffordshire Police and Tesco for eliminating the problem.
"Boy racing is a nuisance more than anything but it's off-putting when you see them racing around," he added.
