I’m now the not so proud owner of a mid range mobility scooter. Not the smallest transportable, nor the biggest road going one which requires VEL and insurance, but a mid range one.
i used to wonder why people took their lives in their hands by using these on the roads, now I know. It’s due to the state of the footpaths, lack of dropped kerbs, or “dropped” kerbs that are too steep or on a bend with an adverse camber.
I’ve hired one of these on holiday before and encountered some difficulties, but was surprised, and disappointed to find it’s worse here at home.
I contacted the council`s Disability Officer. She came to my house and I went out with her. I was on my scooter and she immediately got the dodgy areas sorted. Amazing!
You’ll soon learn the best places to go and the places to avoid but hopefully it will give you a little bit more freedom. You can google miles without stiles for accessible walks.
I went up Northumberlandia the enormous slag heap human sculpture near Cramlington. Was a bit steep but going back to my horse riding days lean forward going up hill, backwards coming down. Fantastic afternoon.
I use a small lightweight mobility scooter and live close to London. Maybe I am lucky but I find that there is almost always a dropped kerb and the pavements in towns and cities are OK.
Once you get off the beaten track or outside urban areas then yes there are problems. Mind you Soho in London can be a nightmare and Guernsey in the Channel Isles is terrible; no dropped kerbs and sometimes the pavement just ceases to exist.
Where I live too! Especially the one outside my own home - we live near a primary school. They park on footpaths too, leaving no room for wheelchairs, prams, scooters, and no way would an ambulance or fire engine get through at school run times, but that’s another issue, and I’ll get off my soapbox!
I couldn’t cross the road yesterday afternoon for parked cars on dropped kerbs.
Some drivers are so inconsiderate. I find myself wishing all kinds of unpleasantness on them!
I find catching cars and in particular their wing mirrors with my shoulder so frustrating. I must have accidently broken a few by accident. Oh well, can’t be helped.
Can I suggest you speak to the head of the school if the parking of the cars is causing significant problems. It might be worth making a note of the relevant number plates and make of cars.
It might increase awareness and understanding of the problem that is being created to you and a pile of other people as well.
Thanks Patrick. Already done that. He was very nice and said he was saddened that the behaviour of parents was upsetting the residents. He’s written a letter to all parents advising them not to park on double yellow lines, dropped kerbs, obstruct driveways and please not to be abusive to residents.
If they’ve passed their driving tests they should know the legislation.
I doubt if anything short of a court appearance will make a “school run mummy” pay any attention to the rules.
Part of the problem is that responsibility for parking offences was taken away from the police, and handed over to local authorities several years ago (1991 to be precise). All the police can enforce is obstruction, and I have never heard of a council taking any sort of parking case to the magistrates court. Indeed. under our “unitary council” we had one (count it - one) Parking Warden responsible for several towns. Even if it was his day for a particular town he could never get out of the town centre.
We recently had a picture in our local paper showing a car totally blocking the pavement - and a guy on his mobility scooter who could not get round it. The number of the car was blanked out.
Maybe we need a “name and shame” website.
You are so right Doctor Geoff. We moved here ten years ago never realising the impact the school would have. We’re not unreasonable and make every effort to be in and not needing to go out, or out and staying out until the school run is over. Neverthess, we’ve been abused, had comments like, “just drive round the block while I pick the children up” “I’m not blocking all your drive” - no room to get a car out. They seem to take the view that as they’re only going to be ten or fifteen minutes it doesn’t matter.