Samantha*, a resident of Humffray Street South, says the aftermath of the early morning crash, in which three people were injured and a police helicopter landed in Barkly Reserve, was like a crossover between "the sound of a war and a Christmas light display."

She says she and other residents are tired and afraid of constant hooning and burnouts in the area.

Following the crash on Sunday, she says, even the residents of Drummond Street came out to see what was happening.

"I thought (the car) was going to land in our house before he tore up the road," Samantha said.

"Chopper sounded like it was too. It was bizarre. There weren't sirens; just a mountain of ambulance and police lights up there. He smashed into the fence on the corner of Barkly and Morton streets.

But she said Sunday's incident was only the latest in a long history of driving problems in the area.

"Why don't (the police) stop them terrorising everyone? My adrenaline keeps me awake an hour in the night every time (hoon drivers) scream past, thinking they'll come through the window. Our sleep is regularly interrupted, we're terrorised by noise; my child is woken up every other night by burnouts.

"Every night, some worse than others. They do a lap of Barkly, Humffray, and also up on Skipton via Hill St which is the route the Kia took. The corner of Gladstone and Tress streets, up the road, has doughnuts routinely. My friend who lives there is exhausted by it.

"It's madness."

Samantha says the continual hooning needs a greater police effort at containment.

"You can't get them on film," she says.

"They are gone by the time you're out of bed. I called the cops one evening when I knew it would be bad and they did have some presence in the area, which curtailed it that night. But unless they put a car on a corner all night, they can't do anything. Do they need to use road spikes? We could use surveillance cameras but then people would whinge about being watched, I suppose.

"Maybe there aren't any police to spare. It's all over... hoons everywhere."

She says she's convinced the stolen Kia involved in Sunday morning's crash had raced past her on Humffray Street on Saturday, but the incident was far from isolated.

"I just assume there are heaps of idiots in Ballarat. The cars sound different, it's not always the same one. Some are regular, some not. I imagine it's just individuals, mostly tearing up their tyres. My dad is always saying, 'Jesus, the money they must spend on tyres...' But I guess that's the least of their cares."

Victoria Police said they were unable to provide a comment on the Sunday morning incident as the individuals involved are in custody.

*Name changed at resident's request.