TEENAGE boys are racing deathtrap cars on the streets of Pontypool and Cwmbran - posing a major danger to the public, police say.

Boys as young as 15 are buying rusty old cars for as little as £60 and racing them at high speeds through the Torfaen towns.

Police say they are dealing with an increasing number of accidents caused by the uninsured street racers in untaxedcars.

PC Darrell Dewar, pictured, said: "We are concerned that if these youngsters continue to race old cars on public roads in this way a serious accident could happen."

Trevethin councillor Lewis Jones, deputy leader of Torfaen council, said: "It's a tremendous problem. The main road through Trevethin is like a race track. There are four or five kids in these old bangers and they drive all over the road and pavements.

"This will undoubtedly lead to someone getting seriously injured or even killed. The police should do a huge purge on these youngsters before something terrible happens."

Police have teamed up with trading standards and are warning the youths and the garages who sell to them that they could be prosecuted. PC Dewar said: "Our officers have stopped 15 and 16-year-olds driving these vehicles in Pontypool and Cwmbran. "They were not stolen but these boys have been going along to garages and buying rust buckets to drive them all over the place. The vehicles are old and dangerous. They are sheds." PC Dewar said the youths are under-age and unlicensed, but the car sellers are not committing an offence. "These cars were sold legitimately. You don't have to produce your driver's licence when you buy a car."

A spokesman for the Cwmbran Centre for Young People said cars were a fascination for a lot of youths in the two towns.

He added: "This is a worrying practice, but not one we are aware of in the young people who use the centre.

"You do find that a lot of young people are fascinated by cars and want to get their hands on a car as soon as they can.

"They can be influenced by films such as the Fast and the Furious." Police have made a number of arrests but are often frustrated as youths abandon the cars before they are caught and cannot be traced.

Inquiries are ongoing into an accident in Upper Cwmbran on June 12 involving an under-age youth in an unlicensed car.

A 16-year-old youth was arrested in connection with the incident, but released on bail.

Now police are teaming up with Torfaen council's trading standards department to send a message to car dealers.

A Torfaen council spokesman said garages would be warned about their actions and they could be prosecuted.

He said: "Any garage that knowingly allows an under-age driver to drive away from their premises is aiding and abetting any offence that the under-age driver commits such as driving without a licence or insurance. "As the young drivers' behaviour is causing a nuisance we may also be able to use our powers against anti-social behaviour."