A controversial weekly motorbike "rally" where riders reached speeds of up to 110mph will be stopped in 2005.

New management at the Dick Turpin pub, on the A127 at Wickford, have decided the meetings do not fit in with the venue's family image.

Police welcomed the news and believe it will help to reduce serious accidents on the blackspot dual-carriageway between Basildon and Southend.

In the summer they launched covert operations after a number of serious incidents near the roadside pub.

On several occasions bikers were seen performing wheelies at speeds of 80mph, while others attempted circular "doughnuts" in the road.

Up to 300 enthusiasts turned up to the events - with a burger van in the pub car park - and some even drank alcohol outside the premises, watching the action from the central reservation.

New manager David Bennett said those activities would be phased out as they built up the food side of their business.

He said: "It is not what we do at the Dick Turpin. We are a family dining pub not a venue for bikers.

"The days of people drinking beer in the car park and road are gone for definite. The burger van should not have been in the car park and won't be there in the future.

"We had to employ doormen to stop people running into the road. That was very expensive and a lot of hassle."