A GANG of 50 teens brought traffic to a standstill on the A127 after terrorising drivers by riding bikes and doing wheelies in the middle of the road.

Drivers were blocked from passing the group near Tesco on Prince Avenue, Southend, with reports of the teens “riding towards oncoming traffic”.

Allegedly, the group were carrying weapons with “knives and baseball bats” seen.

A witness said his family were left feeling nervous after the incident.

He said: “There was an estimate of 50 to 60 of them on bikes bringing the inside lane to a standstill.

“Some were doing wheelies with head cameras on.

“They were all around 13 to 16 years old.

“I have been told they had just come from the airport where a friends son was threatened with weapons.

“They had knives and bats. They were heading London bound but clearly had no care for the other cars.

“Everyone was beeping their horns.

“I just kept walking but my family were very nervous”.

Another driver claimed one teen “did a wheelie up to my bonnet” while others “drove towards us”.

The incident happened on Sunday at around 4.40pm.

The Echo previously reported that a group of 50 armed yobs were seen chasing teenagers and demanding they hand over their bikes by Southend Airport’s retail park on the same day hours earlier.

Police carried out a weapon search on four people near the retail park but no weapons were recovered.

Deputy leader of the council, Ron Woodley said: “This is intimidating behaviour. There’s no need for it.

“What are parents thinking in terms of their children? Are they just letting them run riot or are they bringing them up to have respect?

“I hope people called the police and got it stopped. It’s everyone’s problem. If you see it, report it and get it sorted.”

Mr Woodley is calling for more police on Southend’s streets.

He added: “This is the problem with the police cuts in 2010. We handed the streets over to the criminals.

“We need twice as many police officers. We want more police, especially around the bank holidays.”