Boy racers have been trapped by police in a renewed effort to banish them from a seaside town.

Police spent three hours monitoring hotspots in Eastbourne where boy racers have plagued residents for more than a decade.

They have caused misery with their loud horns, blaring music and rubber-burning wheelspins, sometimes until 4am.

Police have tried various tactics to root them out including using video cameras, CCTV footage and undercover officers.

Letters have been sent to offenders warning them they face a five-year driving ban for a first offence and confiscation of their vehicle if they persist.

However, the cruisers, largely in their teens and early 20s, always return.

Police launched their latest offensive by targeting the Kingsmere estate, Seaside and Lottbridge Drove near Tesco and McDonald's.

Officers also patrolled well-known trouble spots in the Devonshire Place area of the town centre.

A total of 30 stop forms and 23 on-the-spot £30 fines for failing to wear seatbelts and other offences were issued.

One driver was dealt with for speeding and three were issued with a Section 59 warning for antisocial driving.

Police said drivers who received a warning faced having their vehicles seized if they commited a similar offence within the next 12 months.

One person was arrested for drink-driving and another was held in connection with theft and firearms offences.

Twelve officers were involved in the operation, including Polegate-based traffic police.

Police warned there would be more operations to catch irresponsible drivers.

Inspector Pat Taylor, who led the operation, said: "We've listened to people's concerns and will continue to target areas where boy racers cause problems. Similar operations will be continued during the summer months. Their behaviour is antisocial and won't be tolerated."

Boy racers have been gathering in Eastbourne for almost 20 years. At the height of the problem, up to 60 would meet up in the town centre, an area where a lot of pensioners live.

Efforts to disperse them followed pressure in the late Nineties from the Memorial Square Residents' Action Group, which represents more than 500 residents.

During three weekends, its members collected more than 15,000 signatures for more police on Eastbourne's streets before taking the petition to Downing Street.

Last May, one racer was left in tears at the roadside when police seized his car minutes after officers spotted his red Vauxhall Corsa performing a "doughnut" spin in Devonshire Place.

The car was impounded by officers from the Polegate road policing department.

Eastbourne Borough Council has warned it will prosecute drivers who play car stereos too loudly late at night. Some have been fined up to £800.