Leeds chaos as bikes and quadbikes bring roads to a standstill

A gang of bikers have caused chaos across Leeds after an event believed to be organised on social media.

The large group of off-road motorcycles and quad bikes brought Kirkstall Road to a standstill last night.

There were also reports of problems in the city centre, Middleton, Beeston and Armley.

Police closed the road until the group had dispersed. Witnesses posted videos on Twitter and described the scenes as being similar to those in the Mel Gibson film Mad Max.

It was estimated that more than 50 bikes were involved in the incident and the road was believed to have closed for around 90 minutes.

A police helicopter also attended the incident, which was described by Twitter users as madness'' andutter chaos''.

A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said:

There's been a large number of off-road bikes and quads gather after it has been organised on social media."They've been riding up and down Kirkstall Road causing some disruption to traffic." We did have a closure in place on the road but that has been taken off now and everything seems to be returning to normal.''

West Yorkshire Metro tweeted:

Closure Kirkstall Rd from viaduct & BP garage due to a crowd with motorbikes and quad bikes racing up & down the road. Police on the scene.''

Councillor Lucinda Yeadon, deputy leader of Leeds City Council, said police had identified key individuals'' from the motorcycle gang and that some arrests had been made.

In a series of tweets, Ms Yeadon said:

All specialist roads policing officers in West Yorkshire are currently in Kirkstall and helicopter."

Police response being co-ordinated by neighbourhood policing team. Key individuals have been identified."

Police have said priority is safeguarding of public. Evidence is being collected.''

She added:

*Some arrests have been made and (police) expect significant arrest activity over the next few days.''*

Ms Yeadon said the event had been organised by an individual who is being sought by police.

Chief Superintendent Paul Money, Leeds District Commander, said:

“The appalling behaviour that was witnessed in Leeds last night, when a large group of people on motorbikes and quad bikes rode into the city centre and congregated in Kirkstall Road with a complete disregard for the safety of the public, was completely unacceptable."

“Their actions caused significant disruption and nuisance in the area and members of the public were left understandably concerned. We received a large number of calls reporting dangerous riding and other anti-social behaviour by this group."

“Officers from Leeds District, supported by roads policing colleagues and the police helicopter, responded to the incident and were strategically deployed throughout the evening to provide reassurance and gather evidence. Kirkstall Road was temporarily closed in the interests of public safety and the majority of the group dispersed by about 10pm."

“Detectives from Leeds District CID are continuing to conduct detailed and comprehensive enquiries today to identify those involved and take robust action against them. We are working closely with our local authority colleagues, with particular support from Leeds Anti-Social Behaviour Team and LeedsWatch CCTV."

“I want to reassure the members of the public who were caught up in the incident last night and the wider community that we will be doing everything we can and using all available criminal and anti-social behaviour legislation to bring those involved to book."

“We believe this event was organised through social media and we would like to remind people to think very carefully about the consequences of their actions when getting involved in unofficial gatherings such as this."

“It is no secret that we are generally experiencing significant levels of demand on our limited resources and with Halloween last night it was one of our busiest nights for calls for service. What we did not need was the mindless actions of a few creating additional unnecessary demand on those limited resources and potentially causing delays to members of the public in need of a police response.”

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