Village walkabout highlights mobility issues



(L-R) Eve Carey, Dee Bidwell, Claire Young, Julie Morse

 South Glos Highways Officers and local councillor Claire Young recently joined residents for a walk round Westerleigh village to see the difficulties disabled residents face getting about.

Mrs Morse (pictured with the wheelchair) asked for the site meeting so that officers could appreciate how hard it is for people with mobility problems to access village facilities like the church, village hall and pubs. Among the problems highlighted were narrow pavements, overhanging vegetation and the lack of dropped kerbs.

One option discussed that might be considered in the future if funding became available was putting dropped kerbs outside the church and on the village green, with a small piece of path across the green linking the two. This is the route many people use to cross the road, as it gives the best visibility in both directions, but grass is not a good surface for wheelchair users. We would be interested to know people's views on this.