"BOY racers" were caught speeding 80 times in just 90 minutes in one evening near Teesside Park in Stockton - leading police to launch a weekly crackdown.
Cars have been meeting each Wednesday night near the cinema at Teesside Park, driving at speeds of 70 to 80 mph, beeping their horns and revving their engines.
On Wednesday night (April 14) two drivers were issued tickets for careless and inconsiderate driving, and three cars were towed away by police.
Officers from the Cleveland and Durham specialist operations unit, which covers road policing, said that between Sunday March 20 and Saturday, March 26, there were 535 speeding drivers caught in the Cleveland area alone - and of those, 80 were caught on Wednesday, March 23 at Teesside Park in just 90 minutes.
Since then officers have carried out an ongoing operation to crack down on bad driving and racing on public roads in the Teesside Park area.
On its Facebook page, the Roads Policing Unit (RPU) said: "The speed limit on the A66 is 50mph and detections ranged up to, and including, 79 mph.
"The RPU vehicles were not in any way difficult to see and yet people drove past well in excess of the limit. "Many people saw the vehicles and beeped their horns and revved their engines when passing. Others were not paying attention to their speed or what was in front of them.
"Speed and distraction are two of the major causes of collisions where people are killed or seriously injured.
"The issues we saw at Teesside Retail Park have caused us great concern and we will be returning over and over until the message gets through.
"All of those who were identified as speeding will be receive a letter from the police shortly and will be dealt with accordingly. Those who drive antisocially, including beeping horns and revving engines, will also be dealt with."
Police warned that further enforcement in the park, and the A66 approach, would continue over the coming months.
Last night they said: "Two section 59 notices issued to a driver in five days for his anti social driving and excessive speed at Teesside Park.
"Due to that his nice Mercedes has been removed and he's got recovery costs to pay along with no vehicle for the night."
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