A furious driver who veered onto a bike path to hurl abuse at cyclists hogging the road has been hailed as the 'Australian of the Year' for his foul-mouthed rant.

The irate motorist was driving down Swamp Road, between Dunmore and Jamberoo on NSW's south coast, when he came across the two cyclists using the road rather than the bike path running next to it.

'What's the point of us spending this money if you're not going to use it, you f**king d***heads,' he shouted at the pair while zooming down the bike path.

'Pull over, so I can have a chat,' one of the cyclists replied.

'F*** off, f***ing idiot... use the bike track!' the driver shot back.

The incident is thought to have occurred down Swamp Road (pictured) in New South Wales

But despite the foul-mouthed nature of the angry rant, locals took to social media to defend the driver - claiming the government authorities have spent thousands of dollars building the bike path.

'Who else thinks this guy deserves Australian of the year?' One local declared on Facebook - and dozens lined up to defend the driver.

'Totally agree with the guy in the car... there’s a great expensive bike track put in place, they are just being difficult bike riders,' added another.

'Cyclist should also be fined for using the road when a designated bike path is there,' added a third.

The driver pulled over to shout at nearby cyclists (pictured) who he claimed were hogging the road

Not everyone sided with the driver, with some claiming his stunt was illegal and an overreaction.

'I have been riding bikes for 20 years and how dare you speak about us cyclists in such manner, you people don't own the f***ing road,' wrote one man.

The video, which was posted to Facebook page CarMafia and credited to Thomas Harris, was viewed more than 1.5million times in less than eight hours.

The Jamberoo bike path initially cost $470,000 (pictured in red) before a $63,000 extension (pictured in purple, where the incident took place) was made in 2014

The video, taken on Swamp Road, was viewed more than 1.5million times in only eight hours

The Jamberoo bike path drew the ire of locals when it was first constructed in 2014, with angry farmers saying it was 'second rate' and 'shortsighted'.

The original cycleway cost $470,000 and was opened to the public in 2012, but it ended at the head of Swamp Road.

There was then an extension built, which continues along Swamp Road, which cost about $63,000.

The extension was made under a strict time restraint, as a $100,000 grant from the NSW roads authority was due to expire midway through 2014.