Ullswater beachgoers horrified as cars driven along lakeside

Beachgoers said they were horrified when two cars were driven "at speed" alongside a Lake District beach within feet of families.

Footage on social media shows two vehicles passing close to people at Glencoyne Bay on Ullswater.

One witness said the vehicles were driven at an "unreasonable speed" putting "everyone else at risk".

The National Trust said stone barriers had been moved and the drivers "put other beach users in danger".

The footage was filmed at about 19:00 BST on Wednesday.

The woman who filmed it, who has asked not to be identified, told the BBC the cars drove by just a couple of feet away from where she was pumping up her paddleboard.

"We were just completely shocked," she said.

She said there were a few people on the beach at the time and a couple of families who had packed up for the day "thought it better to just drive straight on to the lakeside" instead of walking to the car park.

"There were still other families on the beach who all were grabbing their children and dogs as [the drivers] did this", she said.

The woman said: "The black car got over no problem but the blue car struggled and got stuck but still persisted in driving straight past us at an unreasonable speed to pack up and put their kids in the car, risking everyone else to do it."

The National Trust said: "Moving stone barriers or driving over them poses an environmental risk to the protected Ullswater Lake through potential oil or fuel spills and puts other beach users in danger.

"Our ranger team have been on site today to ensure that the stone barriers are in place and there are no access points for cars.

"While we want people to enjoy the Lake District, we'd urge all visitors to make use of car parks and be aware of access needs of emergency services, farmers and local residents."

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