A woman has branded a cycle path 'lethal' after a child was hit by a bike while walking home from school.

A woman has branded a cycle path "lethal" after a child was hit by a bike while walking home from school.

Lyndsey Hubbard, who lives on Norwich Road in Wymondham, said "unclear road markings" on the joint pedestrian and cycle path had caused multiple near misses.

The path is shared use, but does not have separate lanes for cyclists and those on foot, and Mrs Hubbard said this was leading to collisions and confusion.

Last month, the 51-year-old witnessed a collision between a bicycle and a little girl, and said the impact threw the child into the air before she hit the ground.

She said: "The girl was in a lot of shock and I ran out to help her. The boy on the bike just cycled off. The schools have expanded and it's the worst I've seen it for 20 years. It's an accident waiting to happen, it's lethal"

A spokesman for Norfolk County Council said shared use cycle and pedestrian paths were common, and urged people to use the space "considerately".

But Mrs Hubbard said a line dividing the path into walking and cycling lanes was needed to stop further accidents.

Andrew Rumsay, 39, said the situation on the path was made worse by the obscured signage indicating that bikes were allowed to use the stretch.

The father of two, who regularly cycles into Wymondham via the path, said: "People have hurled abuse at me for being on there because they don't realise its a shared right of way.

"To be fair to them there are trees in front of the signs so unless you know it's for bikes then you might think it's dangerous to have them on there."

Charity Sustrans, which helps create cycle and pedestrian friendly routes, advised cyclists using shared-use paths to travel at an appropriate speed for the conditions, and to be aware of pedestrians, particularly older people, small children, wheelchair users and the visually or hearing impaired.

It added: "People riding bikes tend to be the fastest movers on these paths and particularly need to consider their speed so as not to startle other people, particularly those who are frail or who have reduced sight, hearing or mobility."