VANDALS went on a trail of destruction, slashing the tyres of more than 30 cars in a residential street..

Furious motorists discovered the flat tyres on a stretch of Hulton Lane as they set off for work yesterday morning.

A number of cars had two tyres slashed and it is thought the damage could cost as much as £3,000 to repair.

Resident Nikki Simpson, aged 31, said: "Itis just an absolutely mindless thing to do.

"Itis caused everybody a great deal of inconvenience and most of them will have to fork out for new tyres from their own pockets."

Furious residents were frantically replacing damaged tyres with spares before setting off for work.

It is believed the damage was caused on a stretch of the road between Malton Avenue and Wigan Road at about 1am yesterday.

Some residents said they had not bothered to report the damage because the cost of submitting an insurance claim would be greater than paying for new tyres.

Zakir Shaikh, aged 42, an IT engineer, said: "I've had to take my wheels off and take them in another car to get the tyres replaced.

"You don't really expect this sort of thing to happen but there have been one or two instances of vandalism."

Insp Chris Makin from Bolton Police, said: "We are investigating whether this was a random attack or whether it might have been the result of some sort of grudge.

"I can understand that people will have been very frustrated when they found the damage and we are keen to trace whoever is responsible.

"Hulton Lane is busy throughout the night and I would appeal for anyone who saw a person acting suspiciously to contact the police."