Incidents of road rage, or should we call that ‘cycle rage’ have been occurring on the popular Guild Wheel cycle path.

Reports have been circulating ever since the track opened. Both cyclists and pedestrians have suffered at times from thoughtless and inconsiderate Wheel users. We hope these were isolated incidents.

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Last year Preston Council decided to put up ‘share and care’ reminders, adding them to existing signs around the 21-mile walking and cycle route. An attempt to remind users the track is for pedestrians and cyclists equally. The track was designed to be a safe cycling and walking route for all the family to use.

We reported the results of the Guild Wheel survey back in October showing a rift between cyclists and walkers on Preston’s circular route. Have things got any better?

In a recent interview on local radio station Preston FM, the Leader of Preston Council Peter Rankin, a regular user of the Guild Wheel himself, spoke of his own issues with pedestrians when touring the track.

Careless dog walkers have caused problems for cyclists. Mr Rankin admitted to hitting a dog with his bike while out on the Wheel. Purely accidental of course, but the dog was not on a lead. The owner held the dog as Mr Rankin slowly passed but let it go too early, hitting his bike. Dog walkers with extendable leads also cause problems.

Other issues have been cyclists holding ‘road races’ on parts of the track. This seems to be a relatively new occurrence. Obviously a selfish thing to do and very dangerous to pedestrians and other bike riders. Not what the wheel was created for.

This reporter has even witnessed dads taking their kids for a spin on mini-scooters. The road racers and mini-scooters are causing some to ask for speed limits and official monitoring.

In his radio interview Mr Rankin discussed the idea of a speed limit on the Guild Wheel. However, this would be highly problematic. How would you measure speeds? How would you police it? You can’t police the whole of the Wheel, and why would you want to.

As Mr Rankin quite rightly said at the end of the interview these are the unfortunate consequences of having such a fantastic facility. And it is. We should all be more considerate and just enjoy the environment.

Have you witnessed ‘cycle rage’ on the Guild Wheel? Let us know in the comments below