A TEENAGER is to stand trial later this year accused of dangerously driving a quad bike.

Bradley James Matthew Woodcock is said to have led police on a chase on roads through a market town while riding a Honda TRX420 quad bike.

Appearing at Durham Crown Court for a plea and trial preparation hearing, the 19-year-old, of Newgate, Barnard Castle, denied a charge of dangerous driving.

He is said to have ridden the multi-terrain vehicle in a dangerous manner on Victoria Road, Bede Road, Harmire Road, Garden Lane and Town Pasture Lane, all in Barnard Castle, on Tuesday November 20, last year.

Asked by Judge Jonathan Carroll what the issue would be when the case goes to trial later this year, prosecuting counsel Emma Atkinson said: “It’s one of identity. He says he wasn’t the driver or the passenger.”

Police said once officers came across the quad bike it dashed off in haphazard fashion, causing other vehicles to swerve out of the way, doing various rapid turns and at other times braking sharply.

At one stage police stopped pursuing it, because of the dangerousness of the chase as the quad bike travelled at high speed, nearly colliding with another vehicle.

The chase ended when the quad was ridden into a storage facility and the defendant was arrested on foot outside a short time later, denying having been at the wheel.

A trial, expected to take up to two days of court time, was set for the week of October 28 and the defendant was granted bail until then.