POLICE will clampdown on stone-throwing thugs as young as TEN in Rosyth this weekend.
Youths are causing mayhem in the Sherbrooke estate by throwing items at vehicles on Castle Road, leading to police being inundated with calls from residents and drivers.
It comes just one month after police claimed they had reduced complaints in the area with a new neighbourhood action plan.
The Press understands a female taxi driver had her back window smashed by the teeny thugs on Sunday night.
A witness said, “Kids then took advantage by trying to open the boot and were banging on the windows.
“It only stopped when another taxi pulled up to help her.â€
It follows another alleged incident where a bus driver was said to have been hit in the face with an object thrown from the side of the road.
It has led to fears that the 19/19a Rosyth-Dunfermline-Ballingry service could be re-routed from the troublespots.
Stagecoach refused to comment on the alleged driver assault or the possibility of buses being re-routed when questioned by the Press.
A spokesperson said, “In recent weeks, our drivers have reported a number of incidents on services in the Rosyth area, where youths had been disrupting journeys through abusive behaviour towards our drivers.
“These incidents have been referred to our police liaison officer and we will be assisting the police fully with any further investigations.â€
Taxi driver Craig Knox (27), McGrigor Road, said his vehicle has been “pelted†by mud, stones, eggs and fruit by a group of youths believed to be aged between 13-17.
He said, “On Sunday night I was heading along Castle Road and had stuff thrown at it.
"My partner then went out in her car and she also had stuff pelted at it.
"They walk out in front of cars and bus drivers are talking about cancelling the route.
"Some of them look old enough to have jobs. They need to get their act together and grow up.
“There are a few old people in the street and they’re too scared to go to the shop.â€
A Sherbrooke estate resident, who did not want to be named, said his greenhouse had been damaged and his fence burned down in recent months.
He also said the area outside the Spar supermarket in Sherbrooke Road was a “no-go†zone after 5pm and that there were two groups of youths, one with children “as young as 10-12â€.
“They’ve been abusing the traffic light system and stopping traffic, throwing items at cars, buses and opening bus doors,†he said.
“I work nightshift and have to walk through them on a weekly basis. It’s intimidating.â€
He added that youths also took down promotional ‘dockyard digs’ housing banners from fencing on McGrigor Road and wrapped them around nearby parked cars.
Local Community Inspector Gordon Mitchell told the Press that there had been “significant†reductions in anti-social behaviour in the area.
He said, “Recently there have been sporadic incidents reported and the local community officers have been in touch with residents in the community regarding this.
“Local officers, together with our partnership Safer Neighbourhoods team, will be working in the area over the next period of time.
"Rosyth has a strong community spirit and this can be seen in the support at our community engagement meetings.
“These types of incidents are committed by a very small minority and is not reflective of the majority of young people in Rosyth.â€
Last month the Press reported that police received 94 calls about anti-social behaviour in the Sherbrooke estate between July 2009 and June 2010.
They said they reacted by launching a neighbourhood action plan that began last summer which has helped reduce complaints about anti-social behaviour.
