POLICE are launch a covert operation to target off-road motorcyclists.

Plain clothes officers will patrol the roads around South Park at the weekend, and uniformed officers will be on standby to swoop on youths illegally riding motorbikes.

Residents in Park Lane and Parkside have complained that bikers are making their lives a misery by driving along pavements and revving engines late at night.

Yvonne Hammond, 45, said youths on bikes had been congregating for months behind the railway embankment.

"They ride without helmets and they come along the footpaths. There are lots of elderly people in the area and children and it can be terrifying for them. Last weekend we could hear them all the time over the noise of the railway."

Acting Inspector Dave Kirton, of Darlington police, said people's quality of life was being affected.

"It s an ongoing problem which seems to return every so often," he said.

"The main issue is public safety. It is a time of year when children will be playing out and could easily be hurt.

"These machines usually aren't roadworthy and the kids on them usually have no road skills or insurance or documentation."

He urged residents in the area to call Darlington police station this weekend if they see off-road bikers.

"We are acting on complaints from residents so we need their help," Insp Kirton said.

"The idea for us is to observe them, stop the bikes and seize them if they are illegal vehicles."

He said more operations would be carried out over the summer thanks to Government funding to tackle public order problems.