Car-surfers 'taking lives in their hands'

2:23pm Thursday 3rd July 2008

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Young thrill-seekers have been warned they are taking their lives in their hands after a website video was revealed showing a teenager clinging on to the back of a car driven at speed.

Grinning into the camera, a youth hangs off the tailgate of a car being driven in unidentified side streets believed to be off Leeds Road, Bradford.

A spokesman for leading road safety charity Brake has condemned the practice – known as ‘car surfing’ – which could cause serious injury or death.

And ward Councillor Ghazanfer Khaliq fears the “stupid and dangerous” actions could lead to copycats after the 14-second film was posted on video website YouTube. He is now demanding the film – titled “Bradford Leeds Road bad boy taken for ride” – is taken down.

After watching the video clip, Coun Khaliq (Lab, Bradford Moor) said: “First of all, it is a pretty stupid thing to do and second, it is very dangerous – he is taking his life in his hands.

“He is very vulnerable, he has not got head gear on or any protection and it is worrying that he may fall off.

“I think the police ought to look at this, look at the video and take the appropriate action against the person that is doing this.”

The craze, dubbed “car surfing” by police in other parts of the country, has already led to death and serious injury.

A spokesman for Yorkshire-based Brake condemned it as a “senseless pastime”.

Cathy Keeler, head of campaigns, said: “Brake deplores any behaviour on the roads which causes serious danger to the public.

“Car-surfing is a senseless pastime, which could lead to tragedy. We urge people not to use the roads as a playground, risking serious injury or death.”

Coun Khaliq also criticised YouTube for allowing people to post “irresponsible” videos on its website.

He said: “I think YouTube should be more stringent with what it allows on its site and things like this should be taken off. This is the first time I have come across anything like this before and it is quite shocking.”

A spokesman for YouTube said: “YouTube has clear policies that prohibit inappropriate content on the site. Our community understands the rules and polices the site for inappropriate material. When users feel content is inappropriate they can flag it and our staff then review it as quickly as possible to see if it violates our terms of use. If users repeatedly break these rules we disable their accounts.”

A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said he was unaware of any similar incidents in the Bradford area. He said: “This kind of thing is not something that we are aware of but if people are doing this in the Bradford area, we would advise them to contact police to report it.”

Anyone with information should call 0845 6060606.

e-mail: marc.meneaud @telegraphandargus.co.uk