LIVES are being put in danger by yobs who throw gravel and bottles at motorists in Wootton Bassett.

Police have issued a warning to stop before there is a serious accident.

The teenagers are gathering on a wall next to public toilets in Station Road.

At 4.30pm on Friday youths hurled a plastic bottle of soft drink at the windscreen of a Mini.

The driver, a 24-year-old Wootton Bassett woman, was left shaken by the incident.

A handful of gravel was thrown at the windscreen of a Cherokee Jeep being driven up the road on November 1 at 10.30pm.

The driver, a middle-aged man from Hook, was left fuming. The gravel chipped the bonnet and windscreen of his vehicle

PC Andy Rymell, of Wootton Bassett police, said: "This has the potential to kill someone. I am concerned that they could start throwing glass bottles. The drivers who have come to us have been extremely angry by what has happened.

"I'm sure many more have been hit but haven't reported it.

"These youngsters need to think through the consequences of what they are doing.

"If somebody is hurt, they could find themselves facing a serious offence."

Vandals are damaging vehicles in the nearby Old Court car park by scratching the paintwork.

Police have now stepped up patrols in the area.

The wall has long been a gathering place for teenagers.

The women's toilets and a disabled toilet have been closed for more than a year after vandals wrecked them.

The toilets are the responsibility of North Wiltshire District Council.

Coun Chris Wannell (Con, Wootton Bassett, South) said the behaviour was a sign of declining standards of discipline.

He said: "The children could easily take somebody's life. The problem is the indiscipline in today's society created by do-gooders.

"The police need to catch these idiots and deal with them severely.

"I wish the police still had the right to give children a good whack."

In June, the Evening Advertiser reported how residents were angry because the toilets have not been repaired.

Coun Wannell, who also sits on the town council, added: "The council has done nothing about it. The building is partly boarded up, which just attracts more vandalism because they know it is a derelict building."

Tamash Lal