BIKERS who tear up and down a stretch of dual carriageway are putting lives at risk and causing unacceptable levels of noise, it has been claimed.

The opening of Hale Street bypass at East Peckham, near Maidstone, should have been good news for Jonathan Jaggard and his family, But instead, he says, they are living near a road which "compares to parts of Brands Hatch".

"For us it's more the noise than anything else," Mr Jaggard said. "If I go out in my garden it's terrible. It's miles of noise pollution and there must be a hell of a lot of people who can hear it."

Mr Jaggard, an editor with the BBC in London, his wife Jenny and 10-year-old son Thomas, were delighted when a dual carriageway was built to bypass Hale Street, where they live, five years ago.

But the family believe that having tens of thousands of cars pass their home each day was quieter than living half a mile from the new bypass.

Mr Jaggard, 41, added: "I can't see any way we can control this apart from paying a policeman to stand there all day and that's not going to happen. No residents are going to report individuals as they are too far away and going too fast to make out number plates - unless anyone fancies standing on the footbridge with a camera."

Kevin Still, manager of the Tonbridge and Malling Motorcycle Club, said his members would never condone racing on a public road.

He said: "It's totally stupid and if they want to race they should do it on a proper race track. It's not just their lives they are risking, it's other drivers and kids. My advice is get on a race track to do it."

A Kent Police spokesman said: "We are aware that this is one of a number of places around the county where motorcyclists are causing some difficulty. We are keeping a close eye on that and will take whatever steps are necessary."