A crash on an industrial estate which left nine people injured was 'just a matter of time' according to people who work on the estate or live nearby.

Last night, an alleged "boy racer" ploughed a Mini into a group of nine pedestrians on the Medway City Estate in Strood, leaving four with serious injuries.

It came just days after it was revealed that police were once again trying to crack down on speeding drivers who use the estate as a race track.

Reacting to the news on Facebook Mike Banfield said: "I work nights on the estate, this has been coming for a long time. Every Friday we call the police to warn them of this happening.

"Stupid idiots driving at ridiculous speeds, dumb kids stood on the side of the road. Police should have put a stop to it years ago. No sympathy l'm afraid. What did these people expect to happen?"

A six-month dispersal zone was introduced on the estate in June 2014. It followed the conviction of Sean Medland who crashed into his Ford Mondeo shop after speeding up to 90mph.

Fay Hardstaff said: "I cycle through the estate every Friday and Saturday night on my way to work and, nearly every week, I see these idiots. I think the police do their best. I work with teenagers and, nowadays, youngsters don't take any notice of the police.

"I saw at least 10 cars speeding [last night]. It was only a matter of time before an accident happened. I tend to cycle on the pavement because of the 'boy racers' that congregate around there."

One worker who was leaving her office at 8pm last night said: "There were three cars parked across the entrance to our car park and as I drove along Thomas Longley Road, four people on motor cross bikes came flying along the road towards me about 30mph doing wheelies. I thought, someone is going to get seriously hurt soon."

One local resident, who contacted the Medway Messenger last week, said she could hear the boy racers, who congregate on the industrial estate on Friday and Saturday evenings, from her home in Frindsbury, and is terrified there will be a crash.

The woman, who does not want to be named, said: “I can hear them from around 8pm almost every weekend. And it goes on until 3.30am sometimes. You can tell how fast they are going and then you can hear them skidding.

“I ring 101 and hold the phone out to the operator, and even they can hear it over the phone. It is frightening. It puts me on edge all the time because you are expecting to hear a crash.”

Officers were already on the estate when the crash happened as they were responding to reports of a disturbance involving nuisance vehicles. A weekly dispersal order has been brought in which will operate every Friday evening but can last for up to 48 hours.

The order gives officers the power to break up groups of people caught driving in an antisocial manner. Anyone who returns to the area within 24 hours risks being arrested.