Hi-tech hoons ignore law

Illegal street races are still a regular event in Brisbane five years after the introduction of anti-hooning legislation designed to stop them.

Traffic police have admitted modern communications such as mobile phones and the internet make it easier for the races to be organised at short notice, often drawing huge crowds.

Hoons also were flaunting their dangerous stunts by recording them and posting videos on the internet.

“It's a spontaneous thing that can occur anywhere, anytime, but usually on a Thursday, Friday or Saturday night,” said acting Superintendent Chris Thomas of the State Traffic Support Branch.

A street racing regular said it was usually a case of just driving around until he spotted a group of cars “in one of the usual spots”.

“You've got to be a lot more careful now because of the fines. Industrial estates and carparks are usually the go,” he said.

Police said they were aware of the popular haunts and regularly conducted operations in those areas, including the Heathwood industrial estate in Brisbane's southwest, Capalaba on the bayside and inner-city West End.

Inspector John Murnane of the Metro South Traffic Branch said many different types of people attended the informal meetings, including young families, who saw it as “free entertainment.”

“What they don't realise is how quickly things can go wrong, and when they do, as we've seen recently, everyone just takes off,” Insp Murnane said.

Last Thursday night, a 17-year-old man was injured at MacArthur St, Pinkenba when an uninsured car driven by a 21-year-old woman struck him and several parked cars.

Although the owner of the vehicle has denied his girlfriend was racing, he admitted she was too inexperienced to control the powerful VT Commodore.

“She had never driven it before, and when she put the foot down, it spun out and she didn't know what to do,” he said.

Insp Murnane said drivers involved in illegal street races were looking for an audience.

“It's a very deliberate act by them,” he said. “They've gone to a certain location looking to perform for an audience. Whether they think people are going to look up to them, I don't know.”

Since the introduction of anti-hooning legislation at the end of 2002, 3746 vehicles have been confiscated throughout Queensland for a first offence.

By contrast, only 1 per cent of those vehicles were confiscated for a second time, which police said indicated the laws were proving effective.

However, two of six cars recently impounded on the Gold Coast had been confiscated twice before. The drivers faced losing their vehicles completely, said Inspector Ron Barry of the South-East Region Traffic Branch.

“The first time you take their car, the boys are a bit upset,” he said. “The second time they cry and the third time they get hysterical. To see their pride and joy taken away is very upsetting.”

Police also condemned the “disgraceful” practice of uploading stunts to internet sites.

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