RESIDENTS of a Newport street are calling for a crackdown on boy racers amid claims that they make their lives a misery.

Stow Hillresidents say they suffer sleepless nights because the boy racers congregate near their homes late at night.

Double yellow lines were recently painted in School Lane, off Stow Hill, so police could penalise drivers loitering there.

Residents say lockable barriers at each end of the lane are needed. Father Joe Mullen, who lives at St Mary's Presbytery, on Stow Hill, with four other priests and a pastoral assistant, said they were being driven out of their home by loud music from the cars, revving engines and horns sounding from about 11pm until the early hours.

He said: "They put yellow lines down because the old ones were faded, but it's still a problem. Usually it's fairly quiet on Mondays and Tuesdays, but this Tuesday night the noise went on forever. "As you can imagine this makes sleeping in the house extremely difficult." Father Mullen, a member of the Rosmin-ian Community, or Institute of Charity, added that the cars often block the exit to where the church cars are parked.

He said: "As we are on-call to sick people in the parish and to the two main hospitals in Newport, this is also an area of concern.

"It is not pleasant at 2am to have to ask a crowd of youths to move on so that you can get your car onto the road."

He said he would like to see barriers at either end of School Lane which are closed between 10pm and 5am and to which the presbytery would have the keys. Stow Hill councillor John Marsh said he was calling on the police to take urgent action to obtain such barriers.

"Road racers are charging through there at night and causing mayhem," he said. But Councillor Graham Dally, cabinet member for transport and sustainable development, said the emergency services would need to consulted before any obstructions were put up.

He said: "The issue is, who would open and close these barriers in cases of emergency but the council certainly has no objection in principle."

He added: "The main problem is the boy racers and if the police were able to sort that out there would be no need for these measures."

Inspector Geoff Smith, of Newport central police, said the double yellow lines were just one of a number of possible means they were looking at with the council to alleviate the situation.

Residents of the presbytery are also campaigning against plans to turn an office opposite their home into a bar or restaurant, saying the noise will drive them out. The priests have threatened to leave the presbytery if the plans, due to go before the council planning committee on March 13, are approved.