Four flashing speed signs costing thousands of pounds have been erected along a busy beach promenade to reduce the number of clashes between cyclists and pedestrians.

The vehicle-activated signs flash up the speed limit of 10mph to warn offending riders they are going too fast.

The four digital devices cost £3,000 each and have been placed along the seven-mile prom at Bournemouth, Dorset.

Three of them have been paid for by the local council while the fourth has been funded by beach hut owners fed up with cyclists 'flying' past their cabins.

The prom is hugely popular with pedestrians and cyclists alike and there are regular collisions and near misses.

Last year a 72-year-old grandmother was left badly hurt after she was mown down by a cyclist doing 20mph. Two months later a boy of five was left with cuts and bruises after being hit by a cyclist going too fast.

The new signs are on top of existing signage informing cyclists of the 10mph speed limit and the fact pedestrians have the right of way.