Councillor Kevin McKeown says he has been inundated with complaints from residents about the noise of the bikes and the damage they are doing to the Brickworks football pitch.

He wants police to take more action to combat the problem and has hit out at parents for not ensuring their children use properly authorised facilities.

He said: "I am getting calls from residents on a daily basis. They say they have continually phoned the police about the problem, but they are not taking any action.

"I have witnessed the damage that these youths are doing to the football pitch, but the police say they are not allowed to chase them.

"When we had this problem a few years ago the police used their own trail bikes and a helicopter. But now it has flared up again.

"This is a public park and it's the council tax payer who is paying for it. The ruts these bikes are causing have made the football pitch unplayable."

Councillor McKeown said the riders appeared mainly to be local teenagers and the onus is on parents to make sure their children use dedicated facilities, such as one near Harthill which is approved by both the police and North Lanarkshire Council.

He said: "Parents who buy these bikes for their kids without taking them to a structured environment where they can ride them are being totally irresponsibe.

"People have been telling me that their younger kids can't get out to play because of these bikes and they end up playing football in the street.

"The residents are at the end of their tether. There's no quality of life for people in the likes of George Street and Burns Crescent who can't even sit in peace and quiet in their own homes because of the noise from these bikes roaring past outside.

"Residents are scared to go out and confront the bikers for fear of the abuse they will get and the worry that their homes will be targeted.

"Kids are riding these bikes around with no insurance and no tax. Personally I think the bikes, and the parents, should be taken away to a scrapyard and the bikes crushed to a pulp in front of the parents. That would appear to be the only way to get them to take notice."

Police said they would target areas where illegal use of the machines was causing danger and annoyance, and would use specialist road traffic off-bikes and a helicopter.

PC Allan Wylie, of Bellshill police community safety department, said: "Parents must think very carefully before purchasing these items.

"Riding them in areas without permission, on public roads and in housing estates, creates a nuisance to the community and damage to public parks, and endangers the lives of the people using the machines and the community as a whole.

"Illegal use of a quad bike or trail bike could result in criminal charges and seizure of the bike.

"If you are the parent responsible for the child riding the bike you could also face criminal charges for permitting your child to ride such a vehicle and placing their health in danger."

QUAD BIKERS DRIVE MAN OUT OF HIS HOME - SEE MOTHERWELL TIMES